To approve the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) management plan subject to any amendments prior to submission to the Department for Education (DfE).

The strategic finance manager (SFM) presented the Dedicated Schools Grant deficit management plan. Forum members heard that the deficit was currently small and solely attributed to overspend in recent years in the high needs block. The deficit management plan set out the history of how the deficit had occurred and the actions proposed to reduce spending and recover the deficit. The main theme of the proposals is about providing more in-county provision to avoid as far as possible expensive out county places for pupils with special educational needs.

The plan had been shared with the budget working group who had endorsed the proposals.

The government has extended the statutory accounts override to March 2026 which permits the DSG deficit to be carried forward for a further three years without requiring the council to fund the deficit.

Forum members heard that the local authority had applied what it had learnt from the successful bid to establish Beacon College to its application for a new free school. The bid sought to establish a new school with around 80 place for pupils aged 2-16 with co-morbid learning difficulties and autism. As a free school, the school would be part of a MAT and an open competition would be held to select the provider. If approved, the new school would likely take around 4 years to design, build and open. If the new school was not approved, additional places could be provided but it would be a more fragmented approach and there was currently insufficient capital funding to deliver the scale of places needed.

Forum members highlighted the importance of education, health and care plan reviews being completed promptly when children transferred school. Staff absence had a significant impact in the previous year but this had been addressed and reviews were now on target for this year. Performance was being monitored closely to make sure the improvements were sustained.

It was resolved that:

the DSG Deficit Management Plan is recommended to the Director of Children Services for submission to the Department for Education.