Funding for 0-25 Years Brian Gale Director Policy & Campaigns The National Deaf Children’s Society

Starting on a positive note… “If confusion is the first step to knowledge I must be a genius”   Larry Leissner

FUNDING FOR EARLY YEARS PROVIDERS

EY Funding – The SEN CoP says “LAs must ensure that all providers … meet the needs of …disabled children. In order to do this LAs should make sure funding arrangements for early education reflect the need to provide suitable support for these children”.

EY Funding: Recap EY single funding formula: a base rate per hour plus any additions eg. flexibility (opening times), quality (qualifications of staff) and deprivation (but no low level SEN factor ) Top up for provision costing more than is normally available (unlike schools/FE the nationally prescribed threshold of £6k does not apply – no mention of it in SEN CoP)

Early Years: Example 4 year old child has additional needs costing £5,000 more than what is normally available in a nursery The nursery receives funding for 15 hours of education. Calculated by the EY Single Funding Formula. Funding from the LA’s Early Years Block.

Example continued LA pays a top-up of £5,000 from its High Needs Block? to the provider EY don’t get a notional SEN budget “LAs will need to ensure that there is clarity, through their local offer, about what mainstream early years settings will provide for high needs pupils using funding for the 15 hours of early education” DfE

2 year olds From Sept 2014 free EY education will be extended to more two-year-olds: Those from lower earning households. Those who are adopted. Those who have a statement of SEN or attract the DLA. Important to max take up .

DfE says: “As well as the revenue funding for early years, and for 2 year olds specifically, which should be more than sufficient, capital funding is available to LAs to help with the expansion of provision. These funding streams can be used to make sure that there are sufficient places for young children with SEN and disabilities”

But DfE are now proposing to base funding not on numbers eligible but on actual attendance. This could remove the headroom in LA Early Year Block allocation to fund the additional cost of children with SEN. NatSIP will be responding to the consultation.

NatSIP survey 2013 - Sources of EY funding

Is the level of support EY providers are expected to provide from their own resources for children at SA and SA+ the same as for schools?

Support to EY settings

FUNDING IN MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS

Mainstream: Recap Three elements of funding: Mainstream funding (av £4k) Notional SEN (determined by number of roll, social economic deprivation, lower prior attainment) (tagging in future?) Top up for addition cost over a nationally prescribed threshold (currently £6k)

Mainstream - recap Significant variation in notional budgets between LAs £6k is national requirement (some seeking dispensation e.g. Kent) Adjustments can be made for high numbers on roll (May be helpful for resourced provision. Local discretion but may be nationally prescribed in 2015/16)

Schools – What the SEN CoP says The notional SEN budget “is not a ring-fenced amount, and it is for the school to provide high quality appropriate support from the whole of its budget … They should consider their strategic approach to meeting SEN in the context of the total resources available”

Example of banding Band Per pupil top up value Equivalent TA hours per week in mainstream Core Offer (Local Offer?) Below threshold for EHCP £0 No additional top-up, arrangements funded through elements 1 & 2 Up to 13 Band 1 Meets threshold for EHCP £0-3K 14 to 20 hours Band 2 £3-7K 21-28 hours Band 3 £7-10K 29-35 hours Band 4 £10k and above From 35 hours

NatSIP Survey 2013: Does you LA use a resource banding to allocate top up?

FUNDING OF RESOURCED PROVISION IN MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS

Specialist funding: Recap £10k place funding (from LA if maintained school and EFA if not) Top up (from LA irrespective of type of school) Schools do not receive awpu or other mainstream funding

Top Up Funding Top should meet needs and the cost of provision: 56. Top-up funding will be provided on a per-pupil or per-student basis, based on the assessed needs of the pupil or student, and agreed between the commissioner and provider…

Top Up Continued 57. The way top-up funding is set … is for local determination. LAs will need to work with providers to develop suitable arrangements. Top-up funding must be provided in a way that reflects a pupil’s or student’s needs and the cost of the provision they receive in the setting in which they are placed. It is unlikely that a standard approach that did not take account of the different costs of provision in different settings would do this adequately. DfE 2013-14 Revenue Funding Arrangements: Operational Guidance for Local Authorities

Approaches Central funding and management Delegation: Place funding + top up via: the sensory support service Assessment of individual need – resource panel Total cost model Delegation and buy back (school and LA pay sensory service to make the provision)

Delegation – Sensory Service determines level “The allocation of Top Up funding in Resourced Provision for pupils with visual and hearing impairments will be determined during an annual conversation between the Sensory Service and the schools involved”.

NatSIP Survey: Use of Resource Bands for resourced provision

Banding for resourced provision - Example School sector Per pupil top up value Band 1 Learning Difficulties SLCN and LD resources No additional top up value Up to £3K Band 2 Specialist Learning Difficulties SNSC £3580 Up to £7K Band 3 Severe Learning Difficulties Severe Learning Difficulties Enhanced Autism Autism Enhanced Social, Mental and Emotional Wellbeing Hearing/Visual Impairment £6970 £7740 £7525 Band 4 NM/I £10K and above

Special School Banding   A B C D E Need SLC-ASC Cognition & Learning Behaviour Sensory Physical Level 1 Universal & Core N/A Level 2 £1,750 £583 £2,042 Level 3 £5,834 £2,917 £6,418 Level 4 £10,502 £9,335 £11,085

Total cost model If total cost of provision = £180,000 and 10 pupils then: - place funding @ £10k = £100,000 - top up @ £8k per pupil = £80,000

Delegate – Buyback Model Not common. Applies where a school becomes an academy and place funding comes from EFA rather than LA. But agreement that the service makes the provision. School makes a contribution from place funding and LA in lieu of Top Up funding.

Dealing with falling numbers Cost of provision does not decline in proportion to the fall in numbers. Options: Fund surplus places X (not liked by DfE). Adjust Top Up upwards to compensate for loss of place funding. De-delegate and fund directly through HNB using flexibilities in the funding guidance. (discuss retention of place funding with EFA) Also a minimum funding guarantee.

Total cost model If total cost of provision for 10 pupils = £180,000, then £100k place and £80k top up. If pupils fall to 8 and total cost = £160k, then £80k place and £80k top up. Thus top up goes up from £8k per pupil to £10k per pupil. Reverse the calculation for a rising roll.

What implications has the change in funding for special schools and resourced centres from place funding to place plus had on these establishments?

Post 16 Funding Arrangements

16+ recap For all high needs students, mainstream and specialist providers receive: £10k place funding from EFA (deducted from LA’s DSG. Top up funding from LA

Students with SI 16-18 years who are not high needs Colleges support with element 1 and 2 funding: Mainstream course funding. Disadvantage (socio deprivation factors and numbers without a A*-C in English or Maths).

Lower level needs. The CoP says: Providers have been provided with resources to meet SEN. They receive an allocation based on a national funding formula for their core provision. They also have additional funding for students with SEN. This funding is not ring-fenced and is included in their main allocation in a ‘single line’ budget. Like mainstream schools, colleges are expected to provide appropriate, high quality SEN support using all available resources.

CoP states: It should be noted that colleges are funded by the Education Funding Agency (EFA) for all 16-18 year olds and for those aged 19-25 who have EHC plans, with support from the home local authority for students with high needs. Colleges must not charge tuition fees for these young people.

Do students need a statutory assessment? Top up post 16 Do students need a statutory assessment?   No if 16-18 years Yes if 19-25 years

The SEN CoP says: There is no requirement for an EHC plan for a young person for whom a college receives additional top-up funding except in the case of a young person who is over 19…LAs should be transparent about how they will make decisions about HN funding…. They should share the principles and criteria which underpin those decisions with schools and colleges and with parents and young people. (if you have done this already please let us know)

Defining a high needs student For funding purposes, a high needs student is defined as a young person aged 16-18 who requires additional support costing over £6,000 and any young person aged 19-24 subject to a Learning Difficulty Assessment (LDA), or, in future, an Education Health and Care (EHC) Plan who requires additional support costing over £6,000. (DfE Additional information on the 16-24 high needs funding arrangements Academic year 2013 to 2014 and preparation for 2014 to 2015)

Students with SI 19-25 without LDA/EHC Plan Skills Funding Agency is responsible. SFA says it: is committed to making sure the system effectively supports the needs of the learners with disabilities will make sure  the right level of support is available to remove barriers to education and training fund learners with disabilities as set out in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009

Student 19+ without LDA/EHCP “Colleges are able to charge fees for these students. However, students who meet residency and eligibility criteria will have access to government funding” SEN CoP

Specialist Peripatetic Services to FE Now we have a unified system 0-25 should services be provided to FE on the same basis as schools?   A valid point and very good idea if money was available but………

Can different treatment be justified? Factors to consider: Existing resource stretched too thinly Early support most effective SEN funding is not unified across EY, schools, FE SI services historically funded through top slice of school budgets No transfer of funding from YPLA to LAs to fund extended 16+ responsibility

Can different treatment be justified? (Continued) Much funding was through the LDA identifying specialist support and funded by YPLA. This has been transferred to LAs so statutory assessment is likely to be the main route to funding for support.   But those with lower level needs??? But statutory duties for assessment post 16.

Implications of the transfer of funding to LAs

Questions After her first day at the office Snow White realised she had made a dreadful mistake in applying for a job with the SEN Finance Team