Nearly two-thirds of special schools and maintained nursery schools have faced real-terms funding cuts since 2010, unions have said.
A total of 582 out of 882 special schools in England (66 per cent) had lower real-terms per-pupil funding in 2022-23 than in 2010-11, according to the School Cuts website.
Unions said special schools have endured a £419 million cut to their spending power over this time.
“Inadequate funding has left many schools in a perilous financial position and brought the special educational needs system to its knees,” said Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL).
Funding struggles for nursery schools
In addition, 229 out of 366 maintained nursery schools in England (63 per cent) had lower per-pupil funding in real terms - taking cost inflation into account - over the same period, the School Cuts website shows.
This has amounted to a 19 per cent cut in per-pupil funding of £2,391 on average, unions claimed.
The next government would need to invest £61 million to give maintained nursery schools the same spending power they had in 2010, they added.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, said: “For too long education has been sidelined by government.
“A failure to invest properly in pupils, school staff and buildings causes real arm to children’s learning, social development and both their and the country’s future prospects.”
The School Cuts website, run by the NEU teaching union, ASCL and NAHT, allows people to see its projected cuts analysis at an individual school level.
Unions are calling for all political parties to commit to investing in education, and have said £12.2 billion is needed to restore school spending power to 2010 levels, repair the school estate and provide enough support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
‘Education in crisis’
“School cuts have left education in crisis, with some of our most vulnerable children paying the price,” said Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the NEU.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said schools would need £3.2 billion in extra funding to address the loss of purchasing power in their budgets since 2010.
Last year the School Cuts website said 92 per cent of mainstream schools would not be able to cope with increased costs for 2024-25.
The IFS said that schools would need £700 million in extra funding for 2024-25 to cope with cost rises.
The Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats were contacted for comment.
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