Key Takeaways
- • Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told LBC that private equity firms are "profiteering" from special educational needs and children's social care provision, as the government prepares to publish its Schools White Paper.
- • The government plans to introduce "price bands" to set clearer limits on what independent providers can charge, strengthening local authorities' negotiating position.
- • The White Paper sets a target to halve the disadvantage gap by the time children born under this government finish secondary school.
- • The DfE's disadvantage gap index for Year 11 pupils stood at 3.92 in the latest GCSE results, up from a low of 3.66 in 2019/20 and near a decade high of 3.94 in 2022/23.
- • The White Paper also sets an attendance target to recover 20 million school days a year by the end of 2028/29 compared with 2023/24.
Summary
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said private equity firms are "profiteering" from special educational needs provision, telling LBC that local authorities "are in the hands of" private organisations delivering social care and education services. Her remarks came as the government set out a package of reforms ahead of the full publication of the Schools White Paper on Monday, 23 February 2026.
Phillipson said the government will introduce "price bands" to clarify what providers can charge, so that local authorities are in a stronger position. She acknowledged that many independent specialist schools, often run by charities, do "a brilliant job," but said the government is "spending a fortune" and education quality is variable. She described private equity involvement in children's social care as treating vulnerable children as "a convenient revenue stream," and criticised placements that send children far from home, often by taxi over long journeys, which she said harm their transition into adulthood.
The White Paper will set a target to halve the disadvantage gap by the time children born under this government finish secondary school. The government will also reform how schools receive targeted disadvantaged funding. Following a consultation, allocations could reflect how low family income is, how long that has been the case, and where a child lives, rather than relying on free school meal eligibility. This would remove the need for families to opt into free school meals to qualify for deprivation funding, which the government says would reduce administrative burden on schools.
According to the Department for Education, the disadvantage gap index for Year 11 pupils stood at 3.92 in the latest GCSE results. The index had narrowed from 4.07 in 2011 to 3.66 in 2019/20, then widened post-pandemic to 3.94 in 2022/23, its highest in a decade. The White Paper will also introduce two programmes targeting disadvantaged pupil performance in the North East and coastal areas. Details of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reforms, part of the same white paper, were leaked on Thursday.
Phillipson said the government will introduce "price bands" to clarify what providers can charge, so that local authorities are in a stronger position. She acknowledged that many independent specialist schools, often run by charities, do "a brilliant job," but said the government is "spending a fortune" and education quality is variable. She described private equity involvement in children's social care as treating vulnerable children as "a convenient revenue stream," and criticised placements that send children far from home, often by taxi over long journeys, which she said harm their transition into adulthood.
The White Paper will set a target to halve the disadvantage gap by the time children born under this government finish secondary school. The government will also reform how schools receive targeted disadvantaged funding. Following a consultation, allocations could reflect how low family income is, how long that has been the case, and where a child lives, rather than relying on free school meal eligibility. This would remove the need for families to opt into free school meals to qualify for deprivation funding, which the government says would reduce administrative burden on schools.
According to the Department for Education, the disadvantage gap index for Year 11 pupils stood at 3.92 in the latest GCSE results. The index had narrowed from 4.07 in 2011 to 3.66 in 2019/20, then widened post-pandemic to 3.94 in 2022/23, its highest in a decade. The White Paper will also introduce two programmes targeting disadvantaged pupil performance in the North East and coastal areas. Details of the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) reforms, part of the same white paper, were leaked on Thursday.
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