Issue - meetings

Report of Cabinet Member for Education (and SEND)

The Committee considered a report of the Cabinet Member for Education (and SEND) regarding High Needs Provision Capital Allocations funding (HNPCA) for financial years 2022/23 and 2023-24 (schedule 2 to the signed minutes).

The County Council had been awarded a total of £13,287,793 HNPCA funding by Central Government for the period 2022 to 2024 to support the Authority in their delivery of new places and improve existing provision, within education settings, for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Specifically, the allocation would be used to improve access for children with SEND to mainstream placements and specialist provision in the county increasing the number of children with SEND able to access their local mainstream setting within their community and reduce the numbers of children and young people with SEND accessing independent placements and educational placements out of County.

In addition, the funding supported Staffordshire’s SEND Strategy and the achievement of the Accelerated Progress Plan developed in response to the Local Area SEND revisit inspection which had been undertaken in January 2022. As part of the work on the Accelerated Progress Plan and Dedicated Schools Grant Deficit Management Plan, a County-wide Review of Specialist Provision was being undertaken, to produce a model of graduated specialist provision that ensured equality of access to education which met individual needs of children within their local community.

During the discussion which ensued Members welcomed news of the HNPCA settlement, its implications for the Authority’s SEND Strategy and looked forward to real improvements in the education of children with SEND which the additional funding would enable them to achieve.

RESOLVED – (a) That the report be received and noted.

(b) That the utilisation of funding within Staffordshire’s educational settings to support the delivery of new places and improve existing provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), in line with the SEND Strategy, be supported.