Agenda item

Ian Pearson introduced the report (Agenda Item 13), which presented the forecast financial position of the services funded by the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), highlighting any under or over spends, and to highlight the cumulative deficit on the DSG.

Ian Pearson reported that the report provided Quarter Two figures and therefore the figures were forecasts and gave an indication of the position at the end of the year. Table One provided the original budget and forecasted figures for Quarter One and Two and therefore gave an indication of how the position was changing overtime.

Ian Pearson referred to Table One, where the position for the High Needs Block (HNB) appeared to be £109k. This needed to be considered in context of the significant deficit that had been set against the block.

Ian Pearson drew attention to Appendix A, which provided the DSG 2020/21 budget monitoring at Month Six. He drew attention to the ‘Variance’ column and highlighted that the vast majority of variances were related to top ups and managing additional funding for particular children with additional needs. This was a very difficult area to predict.

Reverend Mark Bennet referred to the Early Years Block (EYB) and asked if there was an indication if Covid had impacted on the pattern of take up of places and the additional needs of young children. Ian Pearson reported that Early Years providers had suffered a great deal throughout the pandemic from both the funding mechanism and also from parents deciding to keep children at home. Settings had also had to put a whole range of methods and strategies in place that had not been funded in the same way as schools. Funding for the sector in the current year had not been typical. The sector was also supporting a deficit reduction plan, which meant providers were operating on a reduced hourly rate and this would continue for the period of the deficit recovery plan.

Gemma Piper asked for actual figures for the last two years to be included in the report going forward.

Maria Morgan concurred with the points raised by Ian Pearson. Regarding maintained nursery provision very few settings were currently full and there had been a reduced uptake in the 30 hour places. Regarding children with additional needs, Maria Morgan stated that there were increased levels of children with lower levels of language and higher levels of anxiety. Children were also struggling to get access to the NHS services that they needed. For early years the wait for speech and language support was 72 weeks and the wait for an ASC diagnosis was 18 months longer than it was before the pandemic. This would mean that there would be a lot of children moving on to primary school without the support that they needed or a diagnosis. Maria Morgan was supportive of further funding going in to the Early Development and Inclusion Team (EDIT) if approved by schools.

Keith Harvey noted that Early Years providers could not comment in the consultation on the possible transfer as it was a transfer of funding from the schools block. This included potential investment in EYs through EDIT and support for transition. He commented that investment in Early Years would be of benefit to all schools. Ian Pearson referred to the list of proposals under section 7.10 of Appendix A of agenda item six, which provided details on the funding transfer to the HNB if agreed.

Catherine McLeod commented on the Early Years Sector and how it contributed to the school system. Catherine McLeod reported that the sector was currently looking at the transition phase and if there was to be some invest to save funding for early years then it would be suggested that it be focused on this area to ensure children moving out of the early years phase with SEND have the necessary support in place and to make the transition to school as smooth as possible. This would also be a benefit to schools.

Ian Pearson reported that there was an overlap between what had been referred to by Catherine McLeod and the proposal for EDIT team. It was agreed that any investment could have a significant benefit. It was important to note that it was about preparing children for the next phase of their life and education and therefore needed to be thought through carefully.

RESOLVED that:

• Actual figures for the last two years to be included in the report going forward.