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SEND in Stoke-on-Trent

Everything parents of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) need to know about Stoke-on-Trent — the Local Offer, EHCP timeliness, tribunal stats, and all 117 schools with their SEN provision.

OFFICIAL LOCAL OFFER
Stoke-on-Trent's SEND Local Offer
Services, support, education, health and social care for 0–25s with SEND
Visit Local Offer →
Ofsted rating: Stoke-on-Trent'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.

EHCP Timeliness

Latest DfE data (2024)
Issued within 20 weeks32.9%
National average: 45.9%
Based on 559 new EHCPs issued in 2024.
Councils must issue new EHCPs within 20 weeks of the request. Exceptions exist but many delays don't qualify.

EHCP Assessment Requests

DfE requests data (2024)
Requests received
788
Refused (no assessment)
189
Refusal rate24.0%
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.

SEND Tribunal

Appeals against LA decisions
Tribunal data not yet imported for Stoke-on-Trent.
Source: HMCTS SENDIST stats ↗

SEN Population

Pupils across all schools in this LA
Live EHCPs maintained (2024/25)
Total EHCPs in force across the LA
3,405
EHCP pupils (rolled up from schools)
8.6% of pupils · Nat avg: 4.8%
3,583
SEN Support (no EHCP)
36.3% of pupils · Nat avg: 13.6%
15,086
Total pupils
41,598

SEN Provision in Stoke-on-Trent

Schools with specialist support
Special schools
Dedicated SEN schools
12
With SEN units
Mainstream schools with a dedicated SEN unit
9
With resourced provision
Specialist places within mainstream schools
7
Open SEN Finder →

Primary Needs of EHCP Pupils in Stoke-on-Trent

DfE data (2024/25)
Most common need in Stoke-on-Trent
Speech Language & Communication— 36.8% of EHCPs
Speech Language & Communication36.8%
Social Emotional & Mental Health32.2%
Autism17.5%
Moderate Learning Difficulties6.3%
Specific Learning Difficulties2.2%
Physical Disability1.9%
Profound & Multiple LD1%
Hearing Impairment0.9%
Severe Learning Difficulties0.7%
Visual Impairment0.5%
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 Stoke-on-Trent

24 schools — special schools, SEN units, and resourced provision
The Crescent Academy
SEN Unit· Good
The Willows Primary School
Resourced
Ormiston Meridian Academy
SEN UnitResourced
Ball Green Primary Academy
Resourced
Spruce House School
Special
Alexandra Infants' School
SEN UnitResourced
The Avenue
Special
Snowhill School
SpecialSEN Unit
Alpha Learning Staffordshire
Special
Glebedale School
SpecialSEN Unit
Rowan House School
Special
The Oaks
Special
Portland School
SEN Unit· Inadequate
Ball Green Primary School
Resourced· Good
Emerge School
Special
Kingsland CofE Academy
SEN Unit· Good
Priory CofE Academy
SEN Unit· Good
Edison Pace School
Special
Wonder Star School
Special
Belgrave St Bartholomew's Academy
SEN Unit· Outstanding
Discovery Academy
Resourced· Requires Improvement
Intuition Holistic Education
Special
The Nest
Special
Sandon Primary Academy
Resourced· Outstanding

Helpful resources

EHCP Guide →
What an EHCP is, how to apply, appeal process
Annual Review Tracker →
Timeline and stages of EHCP annual reviews
Choosing a SEN School →
Practical guide for SEN parents
Our SEN Methodology →
How we calculate SEN Experience Indicator
DATA SOURCES
School-level SEN data: DfE Education Health and Care plans release + GIAS. LA-level stats: DfE EES + HMCTS SENDIST. Local Offer: Stoke-on-Trent Council. National benchmarks are most-recent published values. Last updated: 20 April 2026.