Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Education & Cultural Services

Forward Plan Ref: 2020/170

Contact: Hayley Good, Deputy Director of Children’s Services – Education Tel: 07551 680562

Report by Deputy Director of Children’s Services – Education (CA8).

The report sets out the background to how SEND (High Needs) top-up funding currently operates for special schools in Oxfordshire and how, with Cabinet's approval, a transfer of Dedicated Schools Grant High Needs funding will help support an increase in top-up funding in line with that agreed in September for mainstream schools, in order to better meet the needs of children in these schools.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to approve a one-off increase in top-up funding for Special Schools for 2020/21 funded through the High Needs Block (HNB) of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), in line with the increase provided for mainstream primary and secondary schools in September 2020.

Recommendations Agreed

Cabinet had before it a report which set out the background to how SEND (High Needs) top-up funding currently operated for special schools in Oxfordshire and how, with Cabinet's approval, a transfer of Dedicated Schools Grant High Needs funding would help support an increase in top-up funding in line with that agreed in September for mainstream schools, in order to better meet the needs of children in these schools.

Councillor Emma Turnbull, Shadow Cabinet Member for Education & Cultural Services welcomed the recommendation for one off top of Funding Services.  The Special Schools had done an excellent job of continuing to provide excellent support throughout the pandemic but were under immense strain due to extra costs created by Covid on already highly strained budgets.  These additional costs would not be met by the Governments Covid Support packages. 

She expressed deep concern for the longer-term funding environment schools faced, the one-off uplift did not address the systemic under funding of special schools.  She further noted with concern that Oxfordshire funding of special was below the national average.  She requested to see the full comparative analysis that had been undertaken by officers and indicated that she would wish for the data to be considered by the Education Scrutiny Committee.

Young people with SEND had experienced a significant inequity in terms of the Covid response and the report had highlighted that disadvantage was baked into the system of funding of the special schools.

Councillor Lindsay-Gale thanked Councillor Turnbull for her comments and support of the one-off funding.  She agreed that the funding for the special schools was inadequate and expressed her regret that over the years OCC had allowed the level of funding to slip below the national average.  The proposal today was the start of addressing the issue to get back to being better than average.  This was against a huge deficit, which was a national issue and was due to be reviewed nationally.

A new management structure had been put in to place to reorganise how the SEND service was funded, with a paper coming forward shortly.  She undertook to make the analysis available and for the issue to be discussed at Education Scrutiny Committee.

Councillor Lindsay-Gale, in introducing the report and moving the recommendations commented that the proposal would bring in-line the special schools with the secondary and primary schools and was in essence a 16% uplift of Funding.  She commended the report to the Cabinet.

RESOLVED: to approve a one-off increase in top-up funding for Special Schools for 2020/21 funded through the High Needs Block (HNB) of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), in line with the increase provided for mainstream primary and secondary schools in September 2020.