Staffordshire County Council has now cleared all outstanding Educational Psychology assessments needed for children and young people’s Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), cutting waiting times from six months to no wait at all.
The county council’s Educational Psychology Service has brought the number of children waiting for assessment down from more than 400 last March to fewer than nine today, with new referrals being picked up straightaway.
This is a big step forward in improving support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
The service has also driven down waiting times at every stage of the process, moving from a six‑month wait for an Educational Psychologist to just one week earlier this year, and now to zero delay for allocation.
With the unallocated assessments now cleared, the team is now focusing on speeding up report quality assurance to ensure families continue to receive timely decisions, and high-quality assessment reports for Staffordshire’s children and young people.
Janet Higgins, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, said:
“This achievement is a step in the right direction and reflects the hard work and dedication of our Educational Psychology Service.
“Clearing the backlog means children and families are getting the support they need more quickly, and we will continue to improve services so no child waits longer than necessary for an assessment.”
Staffordshire County Council continues to back the f40 group’s campaign for increased SEND funding and urgent reform, with local authorities nationwide facing an estimated £6 billion SEND deficit by April 2026.
The county council is investing in early intervention and new specialist places but maintains that the national system is outdated and unsustainable.
This is why the county council and f40 are urging Government to ensure future reforms are fully funded and that the education funding model is overhauled so every child receives the support they need.
For more information about f40, and to view funding graphs that show the disparity in education funding across all local authorities in England, please visit https://www.f40.org.uk/ .
