To approve the £19.7m Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) high needs budget for 2022/23. 

That:

1.    A balanced high needs budget for 2022/23 having regard to the views of Schools Forum be approved as follows;

a.    Complex needs funding £2,285,745;

b.    Independent special schools £2,920,000;

c.     Special school commissioned places £1,743,000;

d.    Special school top-up funding

                                      i.        Base funding £3,826,000;

                                     ii.        inflation at 6% for tariffs D - F £279,560;

e.    Post-16 top-up funding £1,600,000;

f.      Mainstream school top-up funding

                                      i.         Base funding £2,863,000;

                                     ii.        inflation at 3% on tariffs A - C £135,890;

g.    Nurture provision for 5 primary and 1 secondary schools including outreach, full year costs £372,100;

h.    Autism and Language Units 56 commissioned places at £6,000 each £336,000

i.      Autism and Language units top-up funding

                                      i.        base funding £362,432;

                                     ii.        inflation at 3% £10,873;

j.      Early years top-up funding £150,000;

k.     Pupil Referral Service 50 commissioned places at £500,000;

l.      Pupil Referral Service top-up funding 40 pupils at tariff band D2 £9,338 (less income recovery from schools) net budget  £239,555;

m.   Pupil Referral Service – additional 10 outdoor places at £15,643 i.e. £156,434;

n.    H3 Home, Hospital and Hub top-up funding

                                      i.        Base funding £397,000

                                     ii.        inflation 3% £4,491;

o.    Pupil Referral Unit  additional support for

                                      i.         Phasing out TLR allowances, three years from September 2021 £35,000;

                                     ii.         Temporary split site allowance £38,000;

                                    iii.        Pupil Referral Unit support fund £50,000;

p.    SEN protection scheme for primary and secondary schools with a cap at £158 x NOR   (number of roll at Oct 2021) £517,000;

q.    Teachers Pay Grant allocations

                                      i.        Special schools and PRU 466 places at £660 per place £307,560;

                                     ii.        Central SEN Support services £52,000;

                                    iii.        NI 1.25% levy for 466 places at £100 per place £46,600;

r.     High needs contingency/contribution to reserves £0;

s.     SEN support services including 3% inflation uplift as marked *

                                      i.         Additional Needs Management* £209,863;

                                     ii.        Complex Learning Communications* £114,897;

                                    iii.        Equalities team – inclusion* £271,855;

                                   iv.        Hearing Impaired Team* £419,725;

                                     v.        Managed moves £5,000;

                                   vi.        Business support £73,000;

                                  vii.        DSG Services* £129,677;

                                 viii.        Behaviour Support Service – match schools de-delegation £37,500;

t.      Charges and income

                                      i.        Excluded pupils (AWPU)/ Hospital offset by compensating reduction in PRU top-ups £0;

                                     ii.        Local authority recoupment -£211,508;

                                    iii.        Transfer from schools block -£507,224;

                                   iv.        Transfer from Central services block -£75,000.

1.    Schools Forum supported the proposed high needs budget at their meeting on 18th March and supported the plans for a secondary autism hub run by an existing school to provide for those students whose autism and anxiety needs are greater than can be met at the existing base and further asked that the 18 post-16 pupil places deducted at source by the Education and Skills Funding Agency be questioned.The Budget Working Party has been consulted on different options with the proposed budget plan, for example, higher or lower inflation rates could be applied to top-up tariffs. Any amendments would need to have regard to available funding, relevant regulations and the council’s statutory duties in supporting children and young people with high needs. It should be noted that the Budget Working Group considered the proposals set out in this report on 4 March 2022 and were content with the budget proposals.