The SEND Efficiency Index, explained
One number for how well support is used. Here is what goes into the SEI, and just as importantly, what it deliberately leaves out.
The SEND Efficiency Index, or SEI, is a single number for how well support is being used. One number invites suspicion, and it should. So here is what goes into it, and just as importantly, what it leaves out.
Four signals, one index
The SEI combines four signals that each describe a different part of the same question:
- Average support hours. How much direct support pupils receive, relative to their assessed need.
- Share of need met. How much of the identified need is actually covered by current provision.
- Deployment quality. Whether support reaches the right pupils at the right time, rather than simply being busy.
- Progress integration. Whether support is connected to outcomes, not running in parallel to them.
Each signal is useful on its own. The index exists because they move together, and reading them in isolation hides the trade-offs between them.
What the SEI is not
The SEI is not a judgement of any individual pupil, teaching assistant or school. It does not replace professional knowledge, and it is not a league table. A lower score is a question worth asking, not a verdict to act on blindly.
Why one number helps
A single figure is easy to dismiss as a simplification. Used well, it does something useful: it gives a trust a consistent way to compare across schools and over time, and a shared place to start the conversation. The detail still matters, and the SEI is designed to lead you into it rather than paper over it.