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SEND in Suffolk

Everything parents of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) need to know about Suffolk: the Local Offer, EHCP timeliness, tribunal stats, and all 367 schools with their SEN provision.

OFFICIAL LOCAL OFFER
Suffolk's SEND Local Offer
Services, support, education, health and social care for children and young people with SEND (birth to age 25)
Visit Local Offer →
Ofsted rating: Suffolk's children's services were rated Requires improvement at their last full inspection in August 2024. This rating covers children's social care, not SEND support directly, though SEND provision is scrutinised in separate Area SEND inspections. Note: Ofsted is phasing out headline children's services ratings from April 2026.

EHCP Timeliness

DfE 2024 data (June 2025 release)
Issued within 20 weeks25.4%
National average: 46.4%
Based on 1,366 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 2024 data (June 2025 release)
Requests received
2,784
Refused (no assessment)
267
Refusal rate9.6%
National: 25.5%
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

DfE 2024 data (June 2025 release)
Appeals registered
279
Appeal rate
National mean: 2.8%
3%
Appealable decisions
9,173
Parent wins at hearing
National estimate (HMCTS)
~98%
Parents win the vast majority of SEND tribunal cases at hearing. If your EHCP request is refused, appealing is often worth pursuing. A high appeal rate may indicate contested decisions locally.

Annual Review Decisions

DfE 2025 release (2024 calendar year) · First published this year
Review decisions within 4 weeks60.4%
National: 44.4%
Based on 6,694 review meetings held in 2024. 401 expected reviews were not held.
After an annual review meeting, LAs must notify parents of the decision (amend, maintain or cease) within 4 weeks. This data was published for the first time in June 2025.

SEN Population

Pupils across all schools in this LA
Live EHCPs maintained (2024/25)
Total EHCPs in force across the LA
8,837
EHCP pupils (rolled up from schools)
0
SEN Support (no EHCP)
0
Total pupils
108,651

SEN Provision in Suffolk

Schools with specialist support
Special schools
Dedicated SEN schools
17
With SEN units
Mainstream schools with a dedicated SEN unit
39
With resourced provision
Specialist places within mainstream schools
15
Open SEN Finder →

Primary Needs of EHCP Pupils in Suffolk

DfE 2024/25 data (June 2025 release)
Most common need in Suffolk
Social Emotional & Mental Health, 25.3% of EHCPs
Social Emotional & Mental Health25.3%
Autism24.5%
Speech Language & Communication18.7%
Moderate Learning Difficulties6.1%
Other3.2%
Specific Learning Difficulties2.2%
Physical Disability1.9%
Severe Learning Difficulties1.5%
Visual Impairment0.4%
Profound & Multiple LD0.2%
Hearing Impairment0.2%
Multi-Sensory Impairment0.2%
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 Suffolk

65 schools, special schools, SEN units, and resourced provision
Bungay High School
Resourced
Morland Church of England Primary School
SEN Unit· Good
Clements Primary Academy
SEN Unit
Castle Manor Academy
SEN Unit
Pushforward Secondary School
Special
Murrayfield Primary - A Paradigm Academy
SEN Unit
Copleston High School
SEN Unit
The Ryes College
SpecialSEN Unit
Woodhall Primary School
SEN Unit· Good
Woodbridge Road Academy
Resourced
Castle Hill Infant School
SEN Unit· Good
Rushmere Hall Primary School
SEN UnitResourced
Mendlesham Primary School
SEN Unit
Cambian Dunbroch School
Special
Pushforward Primary School
Special
Abbey Gardens School
Special
Elveden Church of England Primary Academy
SEN Unit· Outstanding
Ixworth High School
SEN Unit· Good
New Skill Centre
Special
Churchill Special Free School
Resourced
Redstone Hall School
Special
Hillside Special School
Special· Outstanding
Piper's Vale Primary - A Paradigm Academy
SEN Unit· Good
Bramfield House School
Special
Riverwalk School
Resourced· Good
Westgate Community Primary School and Nursery
Resourced· Good
The Ashley School
Resourced· Outstanding
Castle Hill Junior School
SEN Unit· Good
Wetheringsett Manor School
Special
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
SEN Unit· Good
Showing 30 of 65. Use the SEN Finder to filter and search all of them.

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: Suffolk Council. National benchmarks are most-recent published values. Last updated: 20 April 2026.