Issue - decisions

High Needs Budget 2018/19

10/04/2018 - High Needs Budget 2018/19

That:

(a)   the High needs tariffs to mainstream and special schools be revised to a five point  range (Option B) from 1st April 2018 (Post-16 providers from 1st September 2018) to save approx. £300k as follows

Revised

Tariff

Assessment

Points

Funding

2018/19

Local

 

£

Offer

0-9

0

A1

10-14

680

A2

15-19

1,360

B1

20-24

2,355

B2

25-29

3,349

C1

30-34

3,937

C2

35-39

4,525

C3

40-44

5,113

C4

45-49

5,700

D1

50-54

6,568

D2

55-59

7,435

D3

60-64

8,303

D4

65-69

9,170

E1

70-74

10,115

E2

75-79

11,060

E3

80-84

12,005

E4

85-89

12,950

F1

90-94

14,028

F2

95-99

15,105

F3

100-104

16,183

F4

105-109

17,260

 

(b)        Tariffs for the pupil referral service remain fixed until the end of the current contract with the Herefordshire Integrated Behaviour Outreach Service (HIBOS) at which point the tariff allocations are revised with the purpose of reducing the current cost of the service by £50k pa;

(c)         Charges to schools be increased for Pupil Referral Unit services as follows

(i)               Key Stage 4 placement one-off charge increased to £7k from September 2018

(ii)             Increased charges for Key Stage 3 and primary intervention be agreed with HIBOS for implementation from April 2018 to save £25k pa;

(d)        Budget reductions for the SEN Support services of £50k pa for SEN support and £15k pa for the equalities team be approved from April 2018;

(e)         The cost of a place at the resource units at Hampton Dene and Bishop’s schools be decreased to £6k pa as required by the operational guidance received from the DfE for 2018/19 to save £160k pa;

(f)          The surplus funding of £324k retained in the schools block be transferred to the high needs block for 2018/19;

(g)        Further work to review the high needs services and costs be commissioned in conjunction with the School Forum’s  Budget Working Group (BWG) and secondary and primary Headteachers to ensure that high needs expenditure is within the available funding from April 2020 onwards and the working group reports progress regularly to schools forum

(h)        the short term action plan set out in the schools consultation paper be amended as follows

i)                 the proposal that the SEN protection scheme be funded from a top-slice in school budgets from April 2019 be withdrawn; and

ii)               the cap on the SEN protection scheme be gradually raised from £120 x number on roll in 2017/18 to £130 x number on roll in 2018/19 and £140 x number on roll in 2019/20 and potentially subject to further consultation £150 x number on roll in 2020/21

iii)             theSEN protection scheme be restricted to primary schools only

iv)             that an economies of scale reduction to  all new and amended tariff payments to mainstream schools be withdrawn for 2018/19 and the Budget Working Group consider alternative options for inclusion in the autumn 2018 consultation as necessary

(i)          Further consultation with schools be agreed for the autumn term 2018 setting out further proposals for the high needs services for 2019/20

(j)          The high needs budget including the savings as above be approved as set out in Appendix 2.