High needs funding arrangements: 2025 to 2026

High needs funding: 2025 to 2026 operational guide 

This operational guide: 

• helps local authorities plan their 2025 to 2026 financial year high needs funding 

• helps schools, colleges and other education providers plan for the 2025 to 2026 financial and academic year  

• explains how the high needs funding streams work for all types of provision

Special free schools adjustment: a guide for local authorities 

This guide explains how local authorities’ dedicated schools grants (DSG) are adjusted for new and growing special free schools.

High needs place change notification process

Read the guidance for an overview of the place change notification process for the 2025 to 2026 academic year, including how to determine place numbers and a timeline.

How to complete the high needs place change workbook

Local authorities should use these instructions to help complete the high needs place change workbook for providers in their area.

Hospital education funding: guidance

Read the hospital education funding guidance to find out how local authorities can apply for changes to their hospital education funding for the 2025 to 2026 financial year.

High needs pupil numbers in the school census: 2023 to 2024 academic year

The high needs pupil data shows the number of pupils in special academies and special free schools recorded in the spring 2024 school census. It also shows the place numbers for the 2023 to 2024 and 2024 to 2025 academic years. We issued 2023 to 2024 R06 data to local authorities, with the import/export adjustment for the 2024 to 2025 financial year, in June 2024.

High needs place process: alternative provision (AP)(AP) free school guidance for 2025 to 2026

Guidance on completing and returning the AP free school high needs places workbook.

Further information

Read the highthe needsschools fundingoperational 2024guide: 2025 to 2025:2026 operationalto guide forhelp informationplan aboutthe local implementation of the 2024mainstream toschools 2025funding academicsystem andfor financialthe year2025 fundingto arrangements.2026 financial year.

ReadYou thecan ‘Summaryread policythe national notefunding formula for schools and high needspolicy document for further details of the national funding formula (NFF) allocations for mainstream schools and high needs for 2025 to 20262026.

You can view the provisional national funding formula allocation tables‘ for for furtherschools, detailshigh ofneeds theand NFFcentral fundingschool systemservices blocks for 2025 to 2026.

Read the high needs funding 2024 to 2025: operational guide for information about the 2024 to 2025 academic and financial year funding arrangements.

View the high needs: allocated place numbers for a list of allocated high needs place numbers.