Recruitment data from four-county study suggests external SEND staff are being used to provide ongoing pupil support rather than simply short-term cover
20 October 2026 – Primary schools are using almost 12 times more external SEND support than secondary schools, according to new recruitment data that highlights the growing role agency staff are playing in supporting children with additional needs.
Analysis of 2025 placement records from education recruitment specialist Teaching Tomorrow shows primary schools across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire booked 4,117.5 days of external Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) support during the year. By comparison, secondary schools booked just 350 days.
Primary schools accounted for 92.2% of all SEND agency days recorded, with 681 primary placements compared with 43 at secondary level.
While some placements lasted just a few days, others continued for much longer. In Oxfordshire, 18 primary SEND bookings generated 490 days of support, averaging more than 27 days per placement. Three one-to-one placements alone accounted for 218 days, highlighting how external staff are being used to provide more sustained support for individual pupils.
The findings come against a backdrop of rising SEND need nationally. Department for Education figures show more than 1.8 million pupils in England with special educational needs, an increase of 5.2% in a year. The number of pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) increased by 11.6%, to more than 538,000. In primary schools, 19.4% of pupils now have an EHCP or receive SEN support, compared with 17.6% of secondary pupils.
Separate government figures covering children and young people up to the age of 25, show there were 718,838 active EHCPs in England in January 2026, up 12.5% in a year – the largest annual increase since the plans were introduced in 2014.
Teaching Tomorrow says the figures suggest external SEND staff are being used differently from traditional short-term supply cover, particularly in primary schools, with teaching assistants, learning support assistants and one-to-one specialists providing support over days, weeks and, in some cases, months.
Adam Shulman, co-founder of Teaching Tomorrow, said: “Traditionally, people associate agency staff with someone coming in to cover a day or two. But SEND support can be very different. We’re seeing external staff working with individual pupils for weeks or even months, providing continuity that’s particularly important for children with additional needs.
“Schools turn to agency staff for many reasons, from covering long-term absence or filling vacancies to finding someone with specialist SEND experience at short notice. Funding uncertainty can also make permanent recruitment difficult, so agency placements give schools flexibility while ensuring pupils continue receiving the support they need.”
One primary one-to-one SEND specialist said: “For children with SEND, consistency can make an massive difference. Working with the same pupil over several months means you get to know their routines, recognise sensory triggers and understand what helps them feel comfortable and ready to learn. That trust takes time to build, and it can be difficult to maintain when support staff are constantly changing.”
Adam added: “SEND support isn’t simply about putting another adult in the classroom. A pupil may need someone with particular skills, experience or an understanding of specific adjustments. The priority for schools is finding the right person and, where continuity matters, being able to keep that support in place to provide the consistency that helps them thrive. Agency staffing is increasingly about supporting that continuity, rather than just plugging gaps in the timetable.”
The findings are based on Teaching Tomorrow’s analysis of SEND-related agency placements made through the company during 2025 across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire. The figures reflect placements made through Teaching Tomorrow rather than all agency staffing used by schools in these counties.
For more information, visit www.teachingtomorrow.co.uk
