SEND in Blackpool
Everything parents of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) need to know about Blackpool — the Local Offer, EHCP timeliness, tribunal stats, and all 51 schools with their SEN provision.
OFFICIAL LOCAL OFFER
Blackpool's SEND Local Offer
Services, support, education, health and social care for 0–25s with SEND
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Ofsted rating: Blackpool's children's services are currently rated Requires improvement. This means Ofsted has concerns about some services for children. It does not directly reflect SEND support, but SEND provision is often scrutinised in separate Area SEND inspections.
Latest DfE data (2024)
Issued within 20 weeks60.5%
National average: 45.9%
Based on 220 new EHCPs issued in 2024.
Councils must issue new EHCPs within 20 weeks of the request. Exceptions exist but many delays don't qualify.
DfE requests data (2024)
Refusal rate21.0%
National: 25.2%
Lower is better. Refused requests can be appealed to the SEND tribunal — and ~98% of cases heard find in the parent's favour.
Appeals against LA decisions
Pupils across all schools in this LA
Live EHCPs maintained (2024/25)
Total EHCPs in force across the LA
1,661
EHCP pupils (rolled up from schools)
6.5% of pupils · Nat avg: 4.8%
1,291
SEN Support (no EHCP)
18.2% of pupils · Nat avg: 13.6%
3,591
SEN Provision in Blackpool
Schools with specialist support
Special schools
Dedicated SEN schools
4
With SEN units
Mainstream schools with a dedicated SEN unit
4
With resourced provision
Specialist places within mainstream schools
1
Primary Needs of EHCP Pupils in Blackpool
DfE data (2024/25)
Most common need in Blackpool
Speech Language & Communication— 32.1% of EHCPs
Speech Language & Communication32.1%
Social Emotional & Mental Health17.1%
Moderate Learning Difficulties10.3%
Specific Learning Difficulties3.4%
Severe Learning Difficulties0.9%
Multi-Sensory Impairment0.4%
The primary need is the main reason the EHCP was issued. Many children have co-occurring needs. ASD is the most common primary need nationally.
Schools with SEN provision in Blackpool
9 schools — special schools, SEN units, and resourced provision
DATA SOURCES
School-level SEN data: DfE Education Health and Care plans release + GIAS. LA-level stats: DfE EES + HMCTS SENDIST. Local Offer: Blackpool Council. National benchmarks are most-recent published values. Last updated: 20 April 2026.