Academic year 2024/25

Special educational needs in England

Data guidance

Published 12 June 2025

Description

This document describes the data included in the ‘Special educational needs in England’ National Statistics release’s underlying data files. This data is released under the terms of the Open Government License (opens in a new tab) (opens in new tab) and is intended to meet at least 3 stars for Open Data (opens in a new tab) (opens in new tab).

The publication methodology, available on the publication report, should be referenced alongside this data. It provides information on the data sources, their coverage and quality as well as explaining methodology used in producing the data.

Coverage

This release provides information on the number of schools and pupils in:

• state-funded primary schools
• state-funded secondary schools
• state-funded special schools
• non-maintained special schools
• state-funded alternative provision schools (includes pupil referral units, alternative provision academies and free schools)
• independent schools

It includes information on:

• pupil numbers, including, SEN provision, SEN type of need, sex, ethnicity, language and free school meals eligibility
• school numbers, including resourced provision, SEN units and approved provisions (special schools only) 

The information is based on data collected via the pupil level spring school census, school level annual school census, general hospital schools census and alternative provision census.

File formats and conventions

This dataset has not had suppression applied.

The following convention is used throughout the underlying data. 

‘x’ Not applicable

‘z’ Not available

Data files

All data files associated with this releases are listed below with guidance on their content. To download any of these files, please visit our data catalogue.

Age and Gender, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2025

• Filename: sen_age_sex_.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2015/16 to 2024/25
• Content:
  Number of pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and AP schools by SEN provision, type of need, age and sex.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
age_10	Age 10
age_10_percent	Age 10 percent
age_11	Age 11
age_11_percent	Age 11 percent
age_12	Age 12
age_12_percent	Age 12 percent
age_13	Age 13
age_13_percent	Age 13 percent
age_14	Age 14
age_14_percent	Age 14 percent
age_15	Age 15
age_15_percent	Age 15 percent
age_16	Age 16
age_16_percent	Age 16 percent
age_17	Age 17
age_17_percent	Age 17 percent
age_18	Age 18
age_18_percent	Age 18 percent
age_19_and_over	Age 19 and over
age_19_and_over_percent	Age 19 and over percent
age_2_and_under	Age 2 and over
age_2_and_under_percent	Age 2 and under percent
age_3	Age 3
age_3_percent	Age 3 percent
age_4	Age 4
age_4_percent	Age 4 percent
age_5	Age 5
age_5_percent	Age 5 percent
age_6	Age 6
age_6_percent	Age 6 percent
age_7	Age 7
age_7_percent	Age 7 percent
age_8	Age 8
age_8_percent	Age 8 percent
age_9	Age 9
age_9_percent	Age 9 percent
female_age_10	Female age 10
female_age_11	Female age 11
female_age_12	Female age 12
female_age_13	Female age 13
female_age_14	Female age 14
female_age_15	Female age 15
female_age_16	Female age 16
female_age_17	Female age 17
female_age_18	Female age 18
female_age_19_and_over	Female age 19 and over
female_age_2_and_under	Female age 2 and under
female_age_3_lower	Female age 3 lower
female_age_3_middle	Female age 3 middle
female_age_3_upper	Female age 3 upper
female_age_4_lower	Female age 4 lower
female_age_4_middle	Female age 4 middle
female_age_4_upper	Female age 4 upper
female_age_5	Female age 5
female_age_6	Female age 6
female_age_7	Female age 7
female_age_8	Female age 8
female_age_9	Female age 9
male_age_10	Male age 10
male_age_11	Male age 11
male_age_12	Male age 12
male_age_13	Male age 13
male_age_14	Male age 14
male_age_15	Male age 15
male_age_16	Male age 16
male_age_17	Male age 17
male_age_18	Male age 18
male_age_19_and_over	Male age 19 and over
male_age_2_and_under	Male age 2 and under
male_age_3_lower	Male age 3 lower
male_age_3_middle	Male age 3 middle
male_age_3_upper	Male age 3 upper
male_age_4_lower	Male age 4 lower
male_age_4_middle	Male age 4 middle
male_age_4_upper	Male age 4 upper
male_age_5	Male age 5
male_age_6	Male age 6
male_age_7	Male age 7
male_age_8	Male age 8
male_age_9	Male age 9
number_of_pupils	Headcount
phase_type_grouping	Phase type of school - Phase (primary, secondary, special, PRU, independent)
pupil_sex_female	Female
pupil_sex_female_percent	Female (%)
pupil_sex_male	Male
pupil_sex_male_percent	Male (%)
sen_primary_need	Primary type of need - (ASD, HI, VI…)
sen_status	SEN provision - EHC plan/Statement of SEN or SEN support or No SEN

Footnotes

1. Includes state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded alternative provision schools. Does not include independent schools.
2. EHC plans also includes statements of SEN. Statements were phased out from 2014 to 2018
3. Please note that Down Syndrome has been recorded as a primary need for the first time in the school census in 2024/25. This addition means that there are likely to be pupils recorded with a primary need of Downs syndrome this year that would have been recorded with a different primary need last year.

FSM, Ethnicity and Language, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2025

• Filename: sen_fsm_eth_lang_new_.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2015/16 to 2024/25
• Content:
  Number of pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and AP schools by SEN provision, type of need, free school meal eligibility, language and ethnicity.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
ethnicity_any_other_asian_background	Asian - any other Asian background
ethnicity_any_other_asian_background_percent	Asian - any other Asian background (%)
ethnicity_any_other_black_background	Black - Any other Black background
ethnicity_any_other_black_background_percent	Black - Any other Black background (%)
ethnicity_any_other_ethnic_group	Any other ethnic group
ethnicity_any_other_ethnic_group_percent	Any other ethnic group (%)
ethnicity_any_other_mixed_background	Mixed - Any other mixed background
ethnicity_any_other_mixed_background_percent	Mixed - Any other mixed background (%)
ethnicity_any_other_white_background	White - any other White background
ethnicity_any_other_white_background_percent	White - any other White background (%)
ethnicity_bangladeshi	Asian - Bangladeshi
ethnicity_bangladeshi_percent	Asian - Bangladeshi (%)
ethnicity_black_african	Black - Black African
ethnicity_black_african_percent	Black - Black African (%)
ethnicity_black_caribbean	Black - Black Caribbean
ethnicity_black_caribbean_percent	Black - Black Caribbean (%)
ethnicity_chinese	Asian - Chinese
ethnicity_chinese_percent	Asian - Chinese (%)
ethnicity_gypsy_roma	White - Gypsy/Roma
ethnicity_gypsy_roma_percent	White - Gypsy/Roma (%)
ethnicity_indian	Asian - Indian
ethnicity_indian_percent	Asian - Indian (%)
ethnicity_irish	White - Irish
ethnicity_irish_percent	White - Irish (%)
ethnicity_pakistani	Asian - Pakistani
ethnicity_pakistani_percent	Asian - Pakistani (%)
ethnicity_traveller_of_irish_heritage	White - Traveller of Irish heritage
ethnicity_traveller_of_irish_heritage_percent	White - Traveller of Irish heritage (%)
ethnicity_unclassified	Unclassified
ethnicity_unclassified_percent	Unclassified (%)
ethnicity_white_and_asian	Mixed - White and Asian
ethnicity_white_and_asian_percent	Mixed - White and Asian (%)
ethnicity_white_and_black_african	Mixed - White and Black African
ethnicity_white_and_black_african_percent	Mixed - White and Black African (%)
ethnicity_white_and_black_caribbean	Mixed - White and Black Caribbean
ethnicity_white_and_black_caribbean_percent	Mixed - White and Black Caribbean (%)
ethnicity_white_british	White - White British
ethnicity_white_british_percent	White - White British (%)
fsm_eligible	Eligible for free school meals
fsm_eligible_percent	Eligible for free school meals (%)
fsm_not_eligible	Not eligible for free school meals
fsm_not_eligible_percent	Not eligible for free school meals (%)
language_english	First language is known to be, or believed to be English
language_english_percent	First language is known to be, or believed to be English (%)
language_other	First language is known to be, or believed to be, other than English
language_other_percent	First language is known to be, or believed to be, other than English (%)
language_unclassified	First language unclassified
language_unclassified_percent	First language unclassified (%)
number_of_pupils	Headcount
phase_type_grouping	Phase type of school - Phase (primary, secondary, special, PRU (AP school), independent)
sen_primary_need	Primary type of need - (ASD, HI, VI…)
sen_status	SEN provision - EHC plan/Statement of SEN or SEN support/School Action/School Action plus

Footnotes

1. Includes state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded alternative provision schools. Does not include independent schools.
2. EHC plans also includes statements of SEN. Statements were phased out from 2014 to 2018
3. Please note that Down Syndrome has been recorded as a primary need for the first time in the school census in 2024/25. This addition means that there are likely to be pupils recorded with a primary need of Downs syndrome this year that would have been recorded with a different primary need last year.

Year group, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2025

• Filename: sen_ncyear_.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2015/16 to 2024/25
• Content:
  Number of pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and AP schools by SEN provision, type of need and national curriculum year.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
nc_early_years	Early years
nc_early_years_percent	Early years (%)
nc_not_followed	National curriculum not followed
nc_not_followed_percent	National curriculum not followed (%)
nc_reception	Reception
nc_reception_percent	Reception (%)
nc_year_1	Year group 1
nc_year_1_percent	Year group 1 (%)
nc_year_10	Year group 10
nc_year_10_percent	Year group 10 (%)
nc_year_11	Year group 11
nc_year_11_percent	Year group 11 (%)
nc_year_12	Year group 12
nc_year_12_percent	Year group 12 (%)
nc_year_13	Year group 13
nc_year_13_percent	Year group 13 (%)
nc_year_14	Year group 14
nc_year_14_percent	Year group 14 (%)
nc_year_2	Year group 2
nc_year_2_percent	Year group 2 (%)
nc_year_3	Year group 3
nc_year_3_percent	Year group 3 (%)
nc_year_4	Year group 4
nc_year_4_percent	Year group 4 (%)
nc_year_5	Year group 5
nc_year_5_percent	Year group 5 (%)
nc_year_6	Year group 6
nc_year_6_percent	Year group 6 (%)
nc_year_7	Year group 7
nc_year_7_percent	Year group 7 (%)
nc_year_8	Year group 8
nc_year_8_percent	Year group 8 (%)
nc_year_9	Year group 9
nc_year_9_percent	Year group 9 (%)
number_of_pupils	Headcount
phase_type_grouping	Phase type of school - Phase (primary, secondary, special, AP schools, independent)
sen_primary_need	Primary type of need - (ASD, HI, VI…)
sen_status	SEN provision - EHC plan/Statement of SEN or SEN support/School Action/School Action plus

Footnotes

1. Includes state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded alternative provision schools. Does not include independent schools.

Pupils in all schools, by type of SEN provision - 2016 to 2025

• Filename: sen_phase_type_.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2015/16 to 2024/25
• Content:
  Number of pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools, AP schools and independent schools by SEN provision, type of need and school type.

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
ehc_plan	EHC plans
ehc_plan_percent	EHC plans (percent)
hospital_school	Hospital school flag - Yes/No
phase_type_grouping	Phase type of school - Phase (primary, secondary, special, AP school, independent)
sen_support	SEN support/SEN without an EHC plan
sen_support_percent	SEN support/SEN without an EHC plan (percent)
total_pupils	Headcount
type_of_establishment	School type detail - For example - academy converter, community school, independent special

Footnotes

1. Includes state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools, state-funded alternative provision schools and independent schools
2. Includes pupils with SEN support in state-funded schools and pupils with SEN without an EHC plan in Independent schools
3. EHC plans also includes statements of SEN. Statements were phased out from 2014 to 2018

Secondary need, by type of SEN provision and type of need - 2016 to 2025

• Filename: sen_secondary_need_.csv
• Geographic levels: Local authority; National; Regional
• Time period: 2015/16 to 2024/25
• Content:
  Number of pupils in state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and AP schools by SEN provision, primary type of need and secondary type of need

Variable names and descriptions

Variable names and descriptions for this file are provided below:

Variable name	Variable description
number_of_pupils	Headcount
phase_type_grouping	Phase type of school - Phase (primary, secondary, special, PRU, independent)
primary_need	Primary type of need - (ASD, HI, VI…)
pupil_sen_status	SEN provision - EHC plan/Statement of SEN or SEN support/School Action/School Action plus
secondary_need_asd	Autistic Spectrum Disorder
secondary_need_asd_percent	Autistic Spectrum Disorder (%)
secondary_need_hi	Hearing impairment
secondary_need_hi_percent	Hearing impairment (%)
secondary_need_mld	Moderate Learning Difficulty
secondary_need_mld_percent	Moderate Learning Difficulty (%)
secondary_need_msi	Multi-sensory Impairment
secondary_need_msi_percent	Multi-sensory Impairment (%)
secondary_need_nsa	SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need
secondary_need_nsa_percent	SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (%)
secondary_need_oth	Other Difficulty or Disability
secondary_need_oth_percent	Other Difficulty or Disability (%)
secondary_need_pd	Physical Disability
secondary_need_pd_percent	Physical Disability (%)
secondary_need_pmld	Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
secondary_need_pmld_percent	Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty (%)
secondary_need_semh	Social, Emotional and Mental Health
secondary_need_semh_percent	Social, Emotional and Mental Health (%)
secondary_need_slcn	Speech, Language and Communications needs
secondary_need_slcn_percent	Speech, Language and Communications needs (%)
secondary_need_sld	Severe Learning Difficulty
secondary_need_sld_percent	Severe Learning Difficulty (%)
secondary_need_spld	Specific Learning Difficulty
secondary_need_spld_percent	Specific Learning Difficulty (%)
secondary_need_vi	Visual impairment
secondary_need_vi_percent	Visual impairment (%)

Footnotes

1. Includes state-funded nursery, primary, secondary and special schools, non-maintained special schools and state-funded alternative provision schools. Does not include independent schools.
2. EHC plans also includes statements of SEN. Statements were phased out from 2014 to 2018
3. Please note that Down Syndrome has been recorded as a primary need for the first time in the school census in 2024/25. This addition means that there are likely to be pupils recorded with a primary need of Downs syndrome this year that would have been recorded with a different primary need last year.