ABSTRACT
The way a Local Education Authority (LEA) distributes money to schools determines the budget that is available for additional educational needs (AEN). AEN encompasses special educational needs (SEN) and a range of other needs which are outside the statutory definition of SEN. The budget to a large extent determines the 'statement threshold', which is the maximum level of an individual child's needs which can reasonably be met from within the school's own resources. For resource allocation purposes, the statement threshold may be expressed in terms of cost, so that when the cost of making the necessary provision exceeds the statement threshold, the LEA has a duty to issue a statement of SEN.
