Issue - meetings

Recommendations:

Executive Members are asked to note the contents of this report, and to recommend to the Chief Executive Officer that using his emergency powers (as outlined in section 2) he agree that the Council applies:

i.       A Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) of +2% in the calculation of special school budgets for the 2022/23 financial year.

ii.      An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the Banded Funding allocations (top up / element 3 allocations) received by mainstream and special schools and academies for the 2022/23 financial year.

iii.     An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the Banded Funding allocations (top up / element 3 allocations) received by alternative provision settings for the 2022/23 financial year

iv.     An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the factor elements within the Special school contextual funding.

Considered –

A report of the Corporate Director for Children & Young People’s Services seeking Executive approval for a number of recommendations relating to Special school funding arrangements for 2022/23, which needed to be compliant with the High Needs operational guidance issued by the Department for Education (DfE).

County Councillor Patrick Mulligan introduced the report highlighting the recommendations had been broadly supported by the special schools community during a countywide consultation exercise.

He highlighted that whilst there had been extra funding for SEND this year, there had also been a corresponding increase in demand for ECHP, so again the lobbying for additional funding for Special Schools needed to continue.  Finally, he drew attention to the recommendations at paragraph 7 of the report.

Members had no questions and all voted in favour of the recommendations, and therefore it was 

Resolved – That it be recommended to the Chief Executive Officer that using his emergency powers he approve that the Council applies:

i.       A Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) of +2% in the calculation of special school budgets for the 2022/23 financial year.

ii.      An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the Banded Funding allocations (top up / element 3 allocations) received by mainstream and special schools and academies for the 2022/23 financial year.

iii.     An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the Banded Funding allocations (top up / element 3 allocations) received by alternative provision settings for the 2022/23 financial year

iv.     An assumed inflationary increase of +2% to the factor elements within the Special school contextual funding.