Local SEND Reform Plant and Experts at Hand Data
Case reference FOI2026/02461
Received 12 October 2026
Published 5 November 2026
Request
I would like to request the following information:
Request Part 1 In June 2026, your council submitted a set of Local SEND Reform Plan documents to the Department for Education (DfE). As part of this process, the DfE asked your council to submit a completed data template. I have attached a publicly-released example of this completed data template from Hertfordshire Council, to help identify the document in your records. Please provide the completed copy of this data template submitted by your council to the DfE.
• I would be grateful if you could supply this template in read-only Excel spreadsheet form. If this is not possible, then please provide it in as a pdf, formatted in the same way as the completed template example from Hertfordshire Council.
Request Part 2 In summer 2026, the Department for Education provided your council with an allocation from its Experts at Hand & Local Authority SEND Transformation Fund, to cover implementation of these schemes in the 2026-2027 financial year. Please provide the following: A breakdown of the local area partnership’s intended expenditure of the allocation for these grants the 2026-27 financial year, split into three categories:
• Experts at Hand direct delivery;
• Experts at Hand administration; and •
Local Authority SEND transformation.
For the Experts at Hand direct delivery spending, please break the figures down as follows:
• Specialist posts, broken down by type of expertise, number of additional full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Assistant or trainee posts, broken down by type of expertise supported, number of additional full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Specialist outreach support by source of specialist expertise (ie special schools, AP), number of FTE posts where known, and anticipated allocation;
• Other additional Experts at Hand direct delivery posts, with role described, number of full time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs). For the Experts at Hand administration and LA SEND transformation spending, please break the figures down as follows:
• Description of roles, number of full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Spending on contracted or consultancy services, including purpose of spend and amount of allocated funding.
I have attached a publicly-released guide to 2026-27 EaH and LA SEND Transformation grant spending from Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Council. Pages 26 & 27 of this document provide an example of the data that I’m requesting.
• I would be grateful if you could supply this template in read-only Excel spreadsheet form. If this is not possible, then please provide it in a pdf formatted in the same way as the completed template example from BCP Council. Please feel free to get in touch if you need any further clarification of this request. I have also attached two exemplar documents - published online by other councils - to help process the request. Please let me know if you need any further information.
Response
I would like to request the following information:
Request Part 1
In June 2026, your council submitted a set of Local SEND Reform Plan documents to the Department
for Education (DfE). As part of this process, the DfE asked your council to submit a completed data
template.
I have attached a publicly-released example of this completed data template from
Hertfordshire Council, to help identify the document in your records.
Please provide the completed copy of this data template submitted by your council to the DfE.
• I would be grateful if you could supply this template in read-only Excel spreadsheet form. If this is not possible, then please provide it in as a pdf, formatted in the same way as the
completed template example from Hertfordshire Council.
Answer: Please see attached Experts at Hand Spend Plan Year 1.
Request Part 2
In summer 2026, the Department for Education provided your council with an allocation from its Experts at Hand & Local Authority SEND Transformation Fund, to cover implementation of these schemes in the 2026-2027 financial year.
Please provide the following:
A breakdown of the local area partnership’s intended expenditure of the allocation for these grants
the 2026-27 financial year, split into three categories:
• Experts at Hand direct delivery;
• Experts at Hand administration; and
• Local Authority SEND transformation.
For the Experts at Hand direct delivery spending, please break the figures down as follows:
• Specialist posts, broken down by type of expertise, number of additional full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Assistant or trainee posts, broken down by type of expertise supported, number of additional full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Specialist outreach support by source of specialist expertise (ie special schools, AP), number of FTE posts where known, and anticipated allocation;
• Other additional Experts at Hand direct delivery posts, with role described, number of full time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs).
For the Experts at Hand administration and LA SEND transformation spending, please break the figures down as follows:
• Description of roles, number of full-time equivalent (FTE) posts, and anticipated spend (including on-costs);
• Spending on contracted or consultancy services, including purpose of spend and amount of allocated funding.
Answer: Please see attached Appendix 4 Documents.
I have attached a publicly-released guide to 2026-27 EaH and LA SEND Transformation grant
spending from Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Council. Pages 26 & 27 of this document provide an example of the data that I’m requesting.
• I would be grateful if you could supply this template in read-only Excel spreadsheet form. If this is not possible, then please provide it in a pdf formatted in the same way as the
completed template example from BCP Council.
Please feel free to get in touch if you need any further clarification of this request.
I have also attached two exemplar documents - published online by other councils - to help process the request.
Please let me know if you need any further information.
Documents
- Appendix 4 - Herefordshire Local SEND Reform Plan Data template assumptions.csv (17.6 KB)
- Appendix 4 - Herefordshire Local SEND Reform Plan Data template Guidance.csv (15.2 KB)
- Appendix 4 - Herefordshire Local SEND Reform Plan Data template inital data return.csv (27.3 KB)
- Appendix 4 - Herefordshire Local SEND Reform Plan Data template quarterly returns.csv (19.1 KB)
- Experts at Hand Spend Plan Year 1.csv (2.0 KB)
This is Herefordshire Council's response to a freedom of information (FOI) or environmental information regulations (EIR) request.
You can browse our other responses or make a new FOI request.