Autumn Term submission deadline is Friday 25th September 2026
Guidance to apply for Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding V1
What is Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding?
Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding (SENIF) is allocated to promote the inclusion of children within a pre-5 setting who may require additional / different provision due to their Special Educational Need and/or Disability (SEND). This funding also
supports local authorities to undertake their responsibilities to strategically commission SEND services as required under the Children and Families Act 2014. Local authorities are expected to target their Early Years SEND Inclusion Funds at children with
lower-level emerging SEND. ‘Emerging SEND’ is not defined within the DfE’s guidance. We define this as children, assessed as requiring any SEND Support who do not have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP). At the point an EHCP is put in place for a child,
the resources allocated via this EHCP will replace SENIF funding. SENIF must solely be used to enhance staffing ratios.
There are 3 main elements to the review of SENIF applications:
Firstly, the agree/decline process – checking that the information and documentation supplied is within statutory requirements, provided at the point of submission and within the deadline date.
Secondly, all children processed to check they are eligible for and have claimed the Early Education Entitlement including the correct amount of hours, to the correct setting, for the correct child. Without this confirmed, SENIF cannot
be provided.
Finally, the processing of payments.
As we now operate under a termly funding model, the amount of reviewing/processing time required is designed to be condensed to a focused timescale each term. For Spring and Summer term submissions, SENIF personnel spent a vast amount of this focused time
requesting missing documents or clarifying information that would have had an impact on the funding amount provided. This additional checking time was agreed to support settings during the first termly submission only and gradually phased out over the second
term.
As it is unsustainable for SENIF personal to chase missing documents or clarify information during the focussed time allocated,
it is imperative that settings quality check their own submissions. SENIF personnel will take each submission at face value and assume that documents submitted are an accurate representation. They will make decisions on criteria and funding
amount accordingly.
Any submissions that request funding for children who do not meet the criteria or that do not have the necessary documentation/details provided are subject to be declined.
Some factors inconsistently provided:
- Holiday dates - term start date, term end date, any dates closed for holidays/training days/other and for All Year Round children if Bank Holidays are included or not attended
- All Year Round attended hours out of the Early Education Entitlement hours claimed
- Assessment detail
- Up to date information/progress on any EHCA/Ps
In essence, the drop down options and boxes available must be completed on the cohort summary sheet for each child.
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Autumn Term submission deadline is Friday 25th September 2026
To aid with this, the
Guidance to apply for Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding V1 has been updated. Even if you have applied previously, please use the updated guide to ensure all factors have been included in your cohort submission
Please see below for the documents required for your submission and helpful links.
Please ensure scanned documents are by child only.
- 1 attachment is for one child containing the parental consent, practice guide summary, risk assessment or health care plan (if needed).
No more than 4 documents attached per email
- All Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding applications must be submitted via
Galaxkey secure email to: SENIF@bradford.gov.uk
- Please do not send to any other email address as there is risk that your application may be missed and therefore not reviewed at panel.
Any scanned documents that require splitting by child will be sent back.
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Next Steps
Start by reading the below documents/guidance as this will provide you with the criteria for SENIF and top tips of how to fulfil a successful application.
What to consider before applying for Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding January 2026
Guidance to apply for Special Educational Needs Inclusion Funding V1
Parental Consent
Provider Declaration
Cohort Summary Application Document
Banding Model
Practice Guide to the Early Years Developmental Journal
Bradford Matrix of Need
Early Years SEN Progress Grid