Agenda item

To receive a report on High Needs Budget 2015-16, which will summarise the key pressures on the high needs budget for 2016-17.

Liz Williams, Head of Finance, was in attendance to introduce a report on the High Needs Budget for 2016-17. The report summarised the key pressures on the high needs budget for 2016-17 and attention was drawn to ‘Agenda Supplement 2’, which included a late supplementary report complete with 2 appendices on the item.

Mrs Williams detailed that 1 year previously pressures on the High Needs Block had been explained to the Schools Forum and that it had been agreed that a number of savings be implemented; indeed, these savings would amount to just short of £1.5 million. It was also relayed that a discussion with the EFA had been undertaken regarding savings agreed on pupil places and that this saving was to be achieved in a different manner to what was agreed at the June 2015 Schools Forum meeting. Mrs Williams confirmed that £1 million of savings had been achieved in certain areas and that, when considering the planned overspend for 2015/16, the High Needs Budget would be £1 million worse off, if previous savings had not been achieved.

Attention was drawn to the table under paragraph 9 of the report in the agenda pack. It was explained that there had been a significant growth in pupils having been supported with plans across all schools and an increase in pupils placed in the independent sector, and that this was playing through into the spend data.

Mrs Williams detailed that the Independent Special Schools budget was projected to overspend and that the number of residential packages was remaining consistent, however, there had been an increase in the number and cost of day cases; which were the 2 areas where there was growth. Reference was made to the graph below paragraph 15, outlining the numbers of independent special school placements by year group and the year on year movement from January 2015 to January 2016.

Those present were advised that there were worrying trends noted within the reports and that, inevitably, this would impact on costs. The meeting was informed that £91,000 had been allocated for those schools with exceptional numbers of pupils with Statements. Mrs Williams confirmed that some of the savings that had been made previously were not able to be repeated for 2016/17 and therefore, it was necessary for one to look across the budget as a whole to be able to determine where savings could be made.

The point was raised that money would have to be allocated to children with SEN, despite the fact that the High Needs Budget would be operating with a deficit. A discussion was had that noted several concerns, such as the following; that young people who could not be educated in the mainstream sector were often moved around and therefore, it was even more vital that these children were to be provided for

Mrs Williams informed the meeting that £823,000 had been put into the High Needs Budget by the Department of Education (DfE) and that this had led to a net increase of £745,000 for the High Needs Block after adjustmetns for places in non-maintained special schools, however, there was to be a £2.7 million cost pressure for the High Needs Budget, if trends continued the same for the forthcoming year as they had done previously.

It was explained that a review of High Needs Places had already taken place for 2016-17; this review would remove places that were not traditionally being filled. It was stressed that place funding would always need to be targeted on the principle of the money following the pupil.

Mrs Williams drew attention to the fact that the Schools Funding Working Group (SFWG) had recommended that the new banding process needed to be implemented as a matter of urgency and that all pupils in the High Needs sector were to be looked at and moved onto the new bands from April 2016. It was confirmed that top-ups had been the Local Authority’s response to savings and that the assumption was that any full changes would be implemented from April. Grant Davis also confirmed that pupil place funding commenced in September each year and that top-ups were a part of the Local Authority’s budget, which could be amended from April.

Mrs Williams then introduced the supplementary High Needs report, as listed under ‘Agenda Supplement 2’. It was explained that the bulk of the spend in the High Needs Budget was tied up in pupil places and top-ups. It was confirmed that pupil places had now been fixed for the 2016/17 year and that, top-up values needed to be agreed. It was highlighted that there has been no estimate that there would be any new starters and that non-Wiltshire pupils had been taken out of the equation; as they were funded by separate Local Authorities. It was confirmed that the cost of top-ups under the new banding system was initially estimated to cost £11.005 million, which was £482,000 lower than the top ups for High Needs pupils in 2015-16. Mrs Williams commented that the figures noted in appendix 2, were before any minimum funding guarantees.

A discussion was then had where several points were raised in relation to the impact and potential risks of reducing funding for top ups.

Councillor Mayes emphasised that the Schools would have to think and work differently, in order to meet objectives and that new means would need to be identified; in order to ensure that pupils could be adequately provided for. 

Mrs Williams informed those present that the savings noted in the reports did not match the savings that were required and that, as a result, for the following year there would be a highly significant risk of overspend. It was noted that there were risks with all of the approaches presented, however, high percentage reductions had been considered across the mainstream part of the system because of the impact of the Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) in special schools.  It was agreed that protection of losses should also be considered for those mainstream schools losing significant amounts of funding. 

The Chairman then called an adjournment to the meeting of 10 minutes, from 15:35 to 15:45, in order to allow for members to discuss the savings proposals.

After the adjournment Liz Williams re-capped that 2 different types of change had been modelled and that percentage reductions in savings were needed to be agreed; in other words, the top-up values needed to be agreed. Mrs Williams reiterated that the cost pressures of the HNB had been established on the basis of what the HNB had been spending and that restrictions were imperative, as the HNB was able to afford to operate at such a rate. It was commented that the Associate Director for Finance, Michael Hudson, had been made aware that the HNB was entering into 2016/17 with a significant risk.

A discussion was had where members agreed to remain with the percentage rate. The point was raised that although 40% of savings were required, this rate was not sustainable.

Having been put to the meeting, it was

Resolved:

That the Schools Forum determines the value of top-up payments from 1^st April 2016 as reduced to a cash-limit; this is to be a 20% reduction on the overall quantum compared with 2015-16. A cap of £20,000 maximum reduction for Resource Bases and Enhanced Learning Provision (ELP) would be applied in addition to the MFG for special schools.  The protection will apply for the financial year from April 2016 to March 2017.