Education in Portsmouth
Fewer than half of new EHC plans were issued within 20 weeks
Portsmouth issued 42.9% on time in 2025, excluding statutory exceptions, compared with 80% in Southampton and 46.1% across England. SEND means special educational needs and disabilities.
How long are families waiting?
- Portsmouth42.9%
- Southampton80%
- England46.1%
New EHC plans issued within 20 weeks
2019 to 2025
Portsmouth · %
Reviewed figures: 2019 to 2025.
Shown on this chart: From 2019 to 2025, new EHC plans issued within 20 weeks fell by 57.1 percentage points in Portsmouth and fell by 14.3 percentage points in England.
Both places compared over 2019 to 2025, using matching published dates.
Compared areas: Portsmouth; England.
Actual values
Each line joins consecutive published observations for that place. Missing dates remain gaps.
Hover or tap the chart for a value. Use the date slider with touch or arrow keys. Escape closes the chart label.
Calendar-year share of new education, health and care plans issued within 20 weeks, excluding statutory exceptions. Use the same exceptions basis for every place.
A matching Chichester district series is not published in this education-authority dataset. West Sussex covers a wider area.
Source, full data and definitions
Department for Education dataset ↗ · downloaded 2026-11-02. Latest year: published.
The table retains published values for 2020 and 2021 where available; GCSE lines leave gaps because grades were assessed rather than awarded through the usual exams. No 30-year local trend is claimed.
| Period | Portsmouth | Southampton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 100 | 52.7 | 60.4 |
| 2020 | 100 | 100 | 58 |
| 2021 | 97 | 99.5 | 59.9 |
| 2022 | 90 | 98.8 | 49.2 |
| 2023 | 1.6 | 100 | 50.3 |
| 2024 | 4.3 | 97.5 | 46.4 |
| 2025 | 42.9 | 80 | 46.1 |
An education, health and care plan sets out assessed needs and the support to be provided. Timeliness is one measure of the process; it does not show whether the support is suitable or delivered.
How many plans does the council maintain?
Portsmouth maintained 2,616 plans in January 2026. Counts include young people outside school and are not a citywide rate of disability or a measure of unmet need.
Active education, health and care plans
2019 to 2026
Portsmouth · plans
Reviewed figures: 2019 to 2026.
Shown on this chart: From 2019 to 2026, active education, health and care plans rose by 72.9% in Portsmouth and rose by 103.1% in England.
Both places compared over 2019 to 2026, using matching published dates.
Compared areas: Portsmouth; England.
Change since 2019 (%)
Each line joins consecutive published observations for that place. Missing dates remain gaps.
Hover or tap the chart for a value. Use the date slider with touch or arrow keys. Escape closes the chart label.
Plans maintained by the local authority at January each year, including early years and post-16. This is not the count of pupils on school rolls or every child needing support.
A matching Chichester district series is not published in this education-authority dataset. West Sussex covers a wider area.
Source, full data and definitions
Department for Education dataset ↗ · downloaded 2026-11-02. Latest year: published.
The table retains published values for 2020 and 2021 where available; GCSE lines leave gaps because grades were assessed rather than awarded through the usual exams. No 30-year local trend is claimed.
| Period | Portsmouth | Southampton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 1,513 | 1,522 | 353,995 |
| 2020 | 1,596 | 1,736 | 390,109 |
| 2021 | 1,662 | 1,826 | 430,697 |
| 2022 | 1,806 | 1,938 | 473,255 |
| 2023 | 1,919 | 2,184 | 517,048 |
| 2024 | 2,000 | 2,505 | 576,474 |
| 2025 | 2,310 | 2,785 | 638,745 |
| 2026 | 2,616 | 2,945 | 718,838 |
Local SEND and family support → · What could improve support? →
Coverage and publication notes
A 30-year comparable local series is not available for these current definitions.
2020 and 2021 GCSE assessed grades are retained in the full table but omitted from exam trend lines. Later grading transitions and cohort differences remain relevant.
2025/26 primary and GCSE results are provisional. Progress 8 is unavailable for 2024/25 and 2025/26 because the prior-assessment baseline was disrupted.
Education data extracted and checked 2 November 2026. Download the education data and source receipts →