Autumn Budget 2025

Lord Bishop of Portsmouth Excerpts

Thursday 4th December 2025 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Bishop of Portsmouth (Maiden Speech)]

I thank the Minister for his opening speech in this debate on the Budget. In this maiden speech, I want to thank all noble Lords for their warm welcome to the House, and to thank the doorkeepers and parliamentary staff for their unfailing kindness, good humour and patience with lost Bishops, and for the support they gave in the run-up to my introduction in late October.

As Bishop of Portsmouth, I lead a vibrant, confident community of communities. The Anglican diocese of Portsmouth lives from a generous, grounded and corrigible faith, a commitment to collaboration and partnership, and a vision of the common good which includes everyone. Wonderfully, in my view, the motto for the city of Portsmouth is “Heaven’s Light Our Guide”.

Working in partnership with neighbours within the wider Christian community, and with the faith communities and voluntary and statutory sectors, the communities I lead are resolved to serve the people, neighbourhoods and communities of East Hampshire, the city of Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight, to find what is good and to strengthen it, and to work with others for the flourishing of everyone.

I also bring to this House a commitment to the flourishing of children and young people in our nation. I chair the governing body of the National Society for Education, established by royal charter over 200 years ago. Today, the society is a long-standing partner in educational delivery, working with successive Governments and serving the work of nearly 5,000 schools and 900 academies, and educating nearly 1 million children and young people. It is engaged at every level of the education system—from early years to higher education—to inspire a generation of new school and academy leaders, and to work with successive Governments in shaping policy.

In responding to the Budget Statement from His Majesty’s Government, there are two particular areas I want to highlight, with a couple of questions to conclude.

I am proud to know that in my diocese of Portsmouth, churches, faith communities, and volunteers of all faiths and none have put their shoulder to the wheel in supporting those facing poverty in these years. In the Charles Dickens ward of inner-city Portsmouth, over 50% of children live in crushing poverty. In partnership, we serve food banks and provide warm spaces and outreach projects, but none of this will have the impact of the Government’s decision to end the two-child limit, which has been a leading driver of child poverty for nearly a decade, crushing aspiration, hope and opportunity. I commend the Government for this decision, but I hope and pray that this is the beginning of a renewed commitment to investment in a generation of young people.

The second area I want to highlight, and the two questions, relate to special educational needs and disabilities. In my routine work and ministry, head teachers and trust leaders across the diocese, in a wide number of communities and across England share frequently that supporting children with SEND and disabilities has become a particularly pressing matter. I commend the families and teachers who are committed so passionately to work for the inclusion of every child. As my diocese bridges multiple local education authorities, I have seen at first hand the postcode lottery of SEND provision as it is played out for families in our communities. I know of looked-after children struggling to access education while waiting years for CAMHS referrals. We can do better than this: compounding the trauma and adverse childhood experience that have already disproportionately shaped their lives.

I note the intention to bring the cost of SEND provision into the central government spending envelope from 2028-29. This will be a relief to councils holding significant deficits, but I am deeply concerned that no indication has been given to date of how the estimated additional cost involved will be covered—according to OBR, £6 billion by 2028-29—without causing a significant fall in mainstream funding for schools. I note, too, that from 2028, the Government will not expect local authorities to fund future special educational needs costs from their general funds once the statutory override ends at the end of 2027-28.

Once again, I note and welcome the intention to end the statutory override, which keeps SEND spending deficits off councils’ books. But I would welcome some assurance from the Minister that accrued benefit deficits in local authority spending on SEND will not be paid off or reconciled by using the mainstream schools budget. Would the Minister agree with me that further cuts to per-pupil funding risk widening inequality and constraining further schools’ ability to deliver outstanding, aspirational education, perhaps especially for our most disadvantaged and vulnerable children?