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Around a third of local education authorities, which have increased funding for special educational needs by over 30 per cent this year, are being questioned by government officials about their role in the current education cash crisis, writes Amy Taylor.

Newly published spending figures for all 150 LEAs show large variations in their increases for funding for special educational needs, with 45 authorities increasing this by over 30 per cent while 33 have only increased it by 5 per cent or less.

Sir Jeremy Beecham, chairperson of the Local Government Association, said the department for education and skills needed to have more faith in local decision-making processes and that variations in spending between schools and between authorities was inevitable. "Different schools and different parts of the country have different needs, particularly in relation to special needs pupils," he said.

The government has highlighted another 'issue' as the increase in spending on educating pupils outside school, such as in pupil referral units, by half of authorities.

It has also questioned why 19 LEAs appear not to be passing the full increase in the education funding they received from government into their schools budget, meaning schools in these authorities miss out on £23 million. In response eight said they would be doing this in full in January.

The National Association of Head Teachers refuted the government's claim that LEAs were responsible for the financial difficulties saying this lay firmly at the centre.