NORTH YORKSHIRE COUNCIL
CORPORATE DIRECTOR MEETING WITH EXECUTIVE MEMBERS
19 AUGUST 2025
DISTRIBUTION OF THE NATIONAL INSURANCE EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTION COSTS AND 2025 PAY AWARD COSTS ELEMENTS OF THE CORE SCHOOL BUDGET GRANT (CSBG) TO SPECIAL SCHOOLS AND ALTERNATIVE PROVISION SCHOOLS FOR THE 2025-2026 FINANCIAL YEAR
REPORT OF THE CORPORATE DIRECTOR – CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE’S SERVICE
1.0 PURPOSE OF THE REPORT
1.1 This report asks the Corporate Director – Children and Young People’s Service in conjunction with the Executive Members for Children and Young People to agree recommendations in respect of the distribution of the National Insurance Employer Contribution costs and the 2025 Pay Award costs elements of the Department for Education (DfE) Core School Budget Grant (CSBG) for the 2025/26 financial year for Special schools and Alternative Provision (AP) schools.
1.2 The recommendations are based on the DfE grant funding guidance and conditions of grant.
2.0 BACKGROUND
2.1 The DfE have sought to simplify the administration of the continuation of the 2024-2025 teachers’ pay additional grant (TPAG), the 2024-2025 teachers’ pension employer contribution grant (TPECG) and the 2024-2025 core schools budget grant (CSBG) by combining them into a single CSBG for special schools and alternative provision (AP) schools for 2025-2026. In addition to this support, nationally, an additional £125 million has been allocated for employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) costs; and £83 million for teachers’ and other staff 2025 pay awards.
2.2 The CSBG funding rates for the 2025-2026 financial year are as follows:
· £2,054 per place for SEND and AP places in maintained and non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units, and special and AP academies and free schools, in respect of the funding provided in 2024-2025 for TPAG (£446) and TPECG (£595) and the full-year equivalent of the 2024-2025 rate for CSBG (£1,013)
· £496 per place for SEND and AP places in maintained and non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units, and special and AP academies and free schools to support the costs associated with the increase in employers NICs costs from April 2025.
· £339 per place for SEND and AP places in maintained and non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units, special and AP academies and free schools to support the 2025 pay award increases.
2.3 The initial CSBG grant funding allocations to local authorities for maintained and non-maintained special schools, pupil referral units, and special and AP academies and free schools are on the following basis:
· The allocations covering the consolidated 2024-2025 grants (TPAG, TPECG and CSBG) (paid May 2025) and the new NICs element (to be paid September 2025) will be based on:
- the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and AP 2024-2025 academic year place numbers for maintained special schools and pupil referral units,
- five-twelfths of the 2024-2025 academic year place numbers for special and AP academies and free schools, plus seven-twelfths of the available 2025-2026 academic year place numbers for special and AP academies and free schools
· The allocation covering the pay awards will only use the 2025-26 place data as the costs relating to the 2025 teachers’ pay award will occur from the start of the academic year 2025-2026. The funding allocation for this element of the grant will be paid in October 2025.
· A final local authority funding allocation, and the final payment for the 2025-26 financial year, will be published in March 2026. The final allocation will make adjustments to the previous allocations using the following data:
- updated 2024-2025 academic year place numbers for maintained special and AP schools, and 2025-2026 academic year place numbers for maintained special and AP schools, to be provided in the section 251 budget statement for 2025-2026 from each local authority, and due to be published in September 2025
- updated 2024-2025 academic year place numbers for special and AP academies and free schools, and updated 2025-2026 academic year place numbers for academies and free schools, including a pro rata allocation for new special and AP free schools
2.4 The DfE conditions of grant require that for the elements of funding that are a consolidation of the 2024-2025 TPAG, TPECG and CSBG, local authorities must pass on to those schools the CSBG funding at the same combined rate per place, or overall level (converted into an amount per SEND or AP place), as they allocated to those schools in 2024-2025 through the TPAG, TPECG and CSBG, ensuring that all those schools receive a funding allocation from the 2025-2026 CSBG on the basis of:
· the full-year equivalent of the 2024-2025 CSBG, which they received plus the 2024-2025 TPAG and TPECG, and
· five-twelfths of their 2024-2025 academic year place numbers and seven-twelfths of their 2025-2026 academic year place numbers
North Yorkshire Council distributed the TPAG, TPECG and CSBG grant funding for the 2024-25 financial year based on the places numbers and funding rates used by the DfE. In this respect, this approach will need to be continued for the 2025-2026 financial year as per the DfE requirement.
2.5 For the NICs and 2025 pay awards increase elements of the 2025-2026 CSBG which do not have a 2024-2025 equivalent, the DfE have stated that local authorities can use the rates that DfE has used to calculate local authority funding allocations or, following consultation with schools, the local authority can vary the amounts per place.
North Yorkshire Council proposes to use the DfE values for the distribution of the NIC and pay awards increase elements of the 2025-26 CSBG.
3.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
3.1 The required funding for the proposal is provided from the ringfenced CSBG for Special Schools and AP Schools. There is no direct impact on the Council’s budget from this proposal.
4.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
4.1 No specific legal implications are identified as a result of the recommendation contained within this report.
5.0 EQUALITIES IMPACT ASSESSMENT
5.1 An Equalities Impact Screening Assessment (EIA) has been undertaken in respect of the proposal contained in this report. It is anticipated that there will be no impact on any persons with protected characteristics as defined by the Equality Act 2010. The EIA is attached at Appendix 1 of the report.
6.0 CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ASSESSMENT
6.1 No climate change or environmental implications have been identified, through the completion of Climate Change Impact Assessments (Initial Screening Form), with the proposal outlined in this report. The Climate Change Impact Assessment (Initial Screening Form) is attached at Appendix 2 of the report.
7.0 REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
7.1 The local authority must determine a distribution methodology for the CSBG for the 2025-26 financial year using the criteria outlined by DfE.
8.0 RECOMMENDATIONS
8.1 The Corporate Director – Children and Young People’s Service, in conjunction with Executive Members for Children and Young People, is asked to agree the recommendation for the National Insurance Employer Contribution Costs and 2025 Pay Award Costs elements of the Core Schools Budget Grant (CSBG) funding to be distributed to local authority maintained Special Schools and Alternative Provision and Special and Alternative Provision Academies based on the Department for Education (DfE) methodology used to distribute the funding to local authorities for the 2025-2026 financial year.
SIR STUART CARLTON
Corporate Director – Children and Young People’s Service
Report prepared by: Howard Emmett, Assistant Director - Resources