Buckinghamshire primary schools record highest demand for external SEND support across the region

Primary schools in Buckinghamshire recorded the highest volume of external SEND support across a four-county study during 2025, according to new recruitment data from Teaching Tomorrow.

Schools made 345 SEND agency bookings during 2025 | Unsplash

placeholder image — Schools made 345 SEND agency bookings during 2025 | Unsplash

Analysis of the education recruitment specialist’s placement records shows Buckinghamshire primary schools made 345 SEND-related bookings during the year, generating 1,597 days of support. This was the highest number of primary SEND placements recorded by Teaching Tomorrow across Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire.

The average Buckinghamshire placement lasted around 4.6 days, suggesting schools were making frequent use of flexible SEND staff including teaching assistants, learning support assistants and one-to-one specialists. By comparison, Northamptonshire recorded 212 primary SEND bookings, Bedfordshire 106 and Oxfordshire 18.

Teaching Tomorrow co-founder, Adam Shulman | Teaching Tomorrow

Buckinghamshire also recorded the highest secondary SEND agency demand in the four-county study, with 18 placements generating 122 days of support, although this remained far lower than the level recorded in primary schools.

The findings come against a backdrop of sustained SEND demand locally. More than 8,100 primary pupils in Buckinghamshire are identified as having special educational needs and/or disabilities, according to Ofsted data, representing 18.1% of primary pupils in the county.

Demand for more intensive support is also continuing to rise. Buckinghamshire Council said demand for Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) increased by 12% in the year to October 2025, which saw the council managing around 7,500 plans, 58% more than in 2020.

Nationally, latest Department for Education figures show more than 1.85 million pupils have special educational needs, including more than 538,000 with an EHCP.

External SEND staff are often being used very differently from traditional supply cover | Unsplash

Teaching Tomorrow says the Buckinghamshire figures show how regularly some schools are drawing on external staff to maintain SEND provision, particularly where pupils need additional or more individualised support.

Adam Shulman, co-founder of Teaching Tomorrow, said: “Buckinghamshire is one of the busiest areas we work in for SEND staffing and the figures show just how frequently primary schools are bringing in additional support. What stands out is the volume of placements. This isn’t simply a small number of long-term roles driving the figures; schools are repeatedly needing people who can step in and provide additional capacity.

“There are lots of reasons why a school might use agency staff rather than recruit permanently. It may be to cover an absence or maintain continuity while a permanent vacancy is being filled. Budgets can also mean schools do not have the certainty to employ an additional member of staff permanently, so agency staff give them the flexibility to respond as needs change.”

Teaching Tomorrow’s data also shows a marked difference between primary and secondary education.

Across the four counties, primary schools booked 4,117.5 days of external SEND support during 2025, compared with just 350 days in secondary schools. Primary schools accounted for 92.2% of all SEND agency days recorded by the company.

Adam added: “What we see in primary schools is that external SEND staff are often being used very differently from traditional supply cover. They may be brought in to work with an individual pupil, provide one-to-one support or give a class additional capacity where needs are particularly complex.

“The scale of the difference between primary and secondary is striking. It suggests that primary schools are drawing on external SEND support much more routinely, potentially because younger pupils often need more intensive, hands-on support throughout the school day. In Buckinghamshire especially, the high number of relatively short placements suggests schools are using agency staff as a responsive resource, bringing in additional capacity when and where it is needed.”

A secondary SENCO in Buckinghamshire said: “While our core SEN team manages day-to-day support, we frequently need specialist SEND TAs to assist specific students across different subjects. Having flexible SEND cover allows us to maintain the required support in individual lessons without disrupting the student’s overall timetable.”

Teaching Tomorrow analysed SEND placements made through the agency during 2025 across Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire.

For more information, visit www.teachingtomorrow.co.uk