Management Information Sheet
Cluster SEN Frequently Asked Questions
Cluster Collaboration for the Distribution of SEN Funding
| Question | Answer |
| 1. Is the Local Authority reducing the amount of money it is directly spending on children with SEN? | No. There will be no reduction in the amount of money available to schools within the Dedicated Schools Grant for special educational needs within mainstream schools (approx £31 million). What will change is the distribution method used for approximately half of this money, ie in September 2012 we begin the transfer of Pupil Specific Funding to the new school/cluster model. School Specific Allocation (£15 million approx) remains unchanged. |
| 2. What is the funding methodology for SEN cluster funding for pupils with SEN? | In January 2012, Cabinet approved the school cluster model for the full delegation of SEN funding. The Additional Needs Project has been working on the detail of this and full information and guidance will be provided to schools throughout the summer term. In summary, instead of Pupil Specific Funding being linked directly to a Statement of SEN, funding will be delegated to school clusters for them to use to improve outcomes for learners with SEN. The funding methodology is based on pupil numbers and a fixed sum per school. However, we are building a formal review into year one of these new arrangements and therefore this could change. |
| 3. What happens to existing Pupil Specific Funding? | For children who currently have a Statement of SEN and where Pupil Specific Funding is allocated the historical/current funding policy will remain in place whilst that child remains in their current phase of schooling. This means that from September 2012 any new Statements of SEN issued, whilst specifying support, will not generate Pupil Specific Funding. Instead funding will be accessed either via individual School Specific Allocation funding and/or the new SEN cluster funding. In practice this will mean that Pupil Specific Funding will cease to be linked directly to current Statements as children leave their current school/phase, ie at the end of Year 6 and Year 11. Funding linked directly to Statements of SEN would also cease for transfers from nursery to Reception and when "casual admissions" take place, eg when children leave a school for change of home address. Funding which is released following change of school, as above, will then be re-distributed to clusters using the new cluster methodology. |
| 4. If a child is in pre-school provision with a funded statement, does this follow them to Reception Year of mainstream education, or will the funding cease in September 2012? | The pupil will not receive Pupil Specific Funding at their new school in September 2012. All direct funding linked to individual children ceases at the end of a phase, be this nursery, primary Key Stage 2, or secondary Key Stage 4, based on their age, not National Curriculum Year Group in which they are being taught. Instead, funding will be accessed via individual School Specific Allocation funding and/or the new SEN cluster funding. |
| 5. If a child is taught in a different group than it's age, does the funding for a statement stay with the child? | No, the funding for individual children is based on their birth date, not the National Curriculum Year Group in which they are taught. If, for instance, a child due to move into Year 7 in September is kept in primary education, the funding will cease, as though they had transferred to secondary with their peers. |
| 6. Will Pupil Specific Funding follow a child if they are the subject of a Managed Move? | Yes. Where pupils are subject to the Managed Move process and generate PSF, that PSF transfer with them to the receiving school, until they reach the end of the funded phase. |
| 7. Can schools or parents still request a statutory statement? | Yes, statutory assessments can still be requested in the usual way. Under s 323 Education Act 1996, the Local Authority is under a duty to carry out a statutory assessment if a child: (a) has special educational needs, and (b) it is necessary for the authority to determine the special educational provision which any learning difficulty he may have calls for. If a Statement of SEN is issued from September 2012 onwards, there will not be any Pupil Specific Funding allocated in the current way. |
| 8. Will individual children with SEN suffer as a result of these changes? | There is no reason why individual children will suffer as a result of these changes. The money is not reducing. The changes are also being introduced over 7 years, ensuring that our systems of SEN focused cluster working can also grow and develop. This system brings with it many opportunities for children, as well as opportunities for schools and settings. |
| 9. What is happening to Sudden and Significant Medical Needs Funding and First Year of School Funding? | As this funding has historically/currently been allocated from the overall Pupil Specific Funding budget it is part of the delegation to school clusters. Therefore from September 2012 this funding will no longer be allocated in this way. |
| 10. Will there be any central funding available for schools that may need to make changes to their building to accommodate a child with physical disabilities e.g. ramps etc. to facilitate access? | The Schools Forum has agreed to create a small fund for 'auxiliary aids' for disabled children in mainstream settings. |
| 11. Can schools refuse to take a child with a statement on the basis that they can't accommodate their need? | The SEN Code of Practice (2001) makes it very clear that schools cannot refuse admission of a child with SEN, with or without a Statement of SEN, on the basis of available funding. |
| 12. Will the Local Authority provide any support to clusters to operate the new model? | School clusters are not alone - Children's Services are committed to supporting school clusters to develop their own framework for distributing SEN funding and will be making sure: A toolkit of information on 'my school, our cluster' will be provided along with guidance materials and an initial infrastructure for meetings, which can then be adapted and personalised by each cluster. All colleagues will be supported to feel 'confident and competent' to 'start' this process in September 2012 The toolkits will include exemplar agendas; SEND profile for the school and the cluster; financial information for the school and the cluster; "How to" guides to provide practical guidance on how to overcome barriers to learning and where to go for more support or advice. These packs will be provided to schools (hard copy and electronically) during the summer term ready for the new funding scheme to start in September 2012. |
| 13. How does a school access 'support for learning' funding from the cluster? | Each cluster can establish its own mechanism for distributing SEN funding according to need. However, within the cluster SEN 'tool kit' a model is described and all the resources (including request, review and impact processes) are provided. |
| 14. What is the cluster SEN 'tool kit?' | The cluster SEN 'tool kit' is being offered as a 'starting point' to support SEN focused clusters to establish this new way of working. It provides an annual framework for meetings, including agendas, a timeline for actions and the practical resources required to inform and account for the distribution of shared SEN funding. |
| 15. When can I see the cluster SEN 'tool kit?' | The tool kit is being piloted with volunteer settings and professional groups during April and May 2012, and will be shared with Headteachers, SENCOs and Governors from June 2012 onwards. The tool kit framework will begin from September 2012. |
| 16. How will I get the 'tool kit?' | The tool kit will be available online from September, although early drafts will be uploaded as they are approved from the piloting process. The proposed framework includes an initial meeting in the Autumn term for Head teachers, SENCOs and a Governor from each Cluster, facilitated by a cluster SEN 'host.' |
| 17. What is the role of a cluster SEN 'host?' | Each cluster is asked to nominate an SEN 'host' to chair the six, half day cluster SEN meetings during the academic year 2012-13. The SEN 'hosts' will also be invited to attend half a day, half termly preparation meetings, with an LA Senior Adviser prior to each meeting. The purpose of this is to enable greater familiarisation with the content of the tool kit, to explore some evaluative questions and to consider practical management issues with hosting such a meeting. Further details of this will be available within the cluster SEN tool kit guidance materials. |
| 18. Do we have to have a cluster SEN 'host?' | SEN focused clusters will be able to evolve their own ways of working during the 'devolved' year and create their own approaches. From September 2012 as part of the transition to full delegation in 2013, SEN focused clusters will be encouraged to use the available support offered by the SEN 'host' to establish their own way forward. |
| 19. Who will fund a cluster SEN 'host' after the induction year? | If an SEN focused cluster chooses to adopt the SEN 'host' role, this will need to be funded, either by the cluster or through a mechanism agreed by the Schools Forum. There is an opportunity to consider this alongside the current discussions regarding future funding of Advisory Support Teachers. |
| 20. What are the opportunities that the new SEN funding arrangements will bring? | The distribution of SEN funding to school clusters is a change that brings significant opportunities: There will be less reliance on Statements of SEN and more opportunity for early intervention/ prevention leading to improved outcomes for children and young people in Norfolk. It will enable schools and Children's Services support staff to focus their attention on how to 'give' support, as opposed to how to 'get' money; and the emphasis of our SEN system can adapt from 'hours' on a Statement, to 'needs led' support for learning. Clusters will also be able to arrange for continuous professional development across the cluster. Clusters can consider appointing staff with specific SEN expertise to both support individual children and also lead capacity building across the teaching/non-teaching workforce within a cluster. |
| 21. But what are the risks? | This is new. It is very different, and it is happening now. The risk is that we resort to what we have always done, in which case we will only get what we have always got. If SEN focused clusters simply distribute hours of support linked to Statements, the opportunities for earlier targeted intervention may not be maximised. |
| 22. The formula for allocating SEN funds to clusters does not differentiate in terms of need, i.e. some clusters will have much greater SEN than others. Will the funding methodology for SEN cluster be reviewed to include a need element? | Not initially, although it will be reviewed during the first year of devolved funding and we will consider any changes required via the Schools Forum, which in turn will inform the requirement to progress any significant changes via the annual Fair Funding consultation process. We need to implement the system first, monitor how it works, then make amendments based on acquired knowledge. |
| 23. Which functions will remain a local authority responsibility, eg appeals to the SEN & Disability Tribunal, Educational Psychologists etc? | All activity relating to SEN & Disability Tribunal remains the responsibility of the local authority. We have redesigned our operational "SEN Services" which includes educational psychology and these redesigned services begin from 1 June 2012. We continue, via the Additional Needs Project, to consider how educational psychology can trade in addition to providing a core offer (details of which will follow throughout the summer term). We are also reviewing the most appropriate form of delegation, from September 2013, for the Learning Support Service to school clusters. The local authority will continue to provide a range of operational service relating to SEN, for example the redesigned SEN casework function and Sensory Support Service. The local authority will also maintain "back-office" functions relating to the transition from Pupil Specific Funding to cluster funding arrangements. |
| 24. What's happening about the delegation of the Learning Support Service? | A group has been set up, led by our Principal Educational Psychologist, to consider the delegation of the Learning Support Service. The group includes schools, governors, educational psychologists and specialist teachers. Their task is to develop options for the delegation of the service - these options will then form part of the Fair Funding consultation with schools in autumn 2012. A staff consultation will also be carried out during November-December 2012. The group will report back to the Learning Difficulties & Disabilities Funding Sub-Group (of Schools Forum) as the work progresses during the spring and summer terms this year. The work of this group will be linked to our consideration of having a traded element of the Educational Psychology service in addition to the core offer to schools. |
| 25. What's happening about the potential trading of the Educational Psychology Service? | A group has been set up, led by our Principal Educational Psychologist, to consider possible models for a traded Educational Psychology service in addition to the core offer to schools. It is anticipated that a phased implementation could begin from September 2012. The work of this group will be linked to our review of the Learning Support Service delegation to school clusters from September 2013. |
| 26. I still have lots of questions and uncertainties about this, how will these be resolved? | Over the next few weeks and months, there will be many opportunities to clarify our 'starting point' with this process. If possible, share your questions with SEN focused cluster colleagues, and identify the opportunities and risks from your perspective. We will endeavour to answer as many queries as we can by updates to the FAQ on e-courier, so that all colleagues are receiving the same message. Please forward any queries you have to Steve Knowlton-Rayner by e-mailing stephen.knowlton-rayner@norfolk.gov.uk. Steve will be collating all queries and responses, and updating the FAQs on a regular basis. |
| 27. What happens next? | March 2012 - Draft tool kit April 2012 - Schools/clusters will receive indicative cluster SEN budget April 2012 - May 2012 - Piloting of tool kit materials June 2012 - Briefings to share framework and tool kit so far June 2012 - Implementation of redesigned Children's Services 'SEN Services' Operational Teams Summer Term 2012 - Schools/clusters will receive full guidance on the new SEN policy/funding scheme July 2012 - Initial meeting of cluster 'hosts' September 2012 - Begin process: devolved SEN funding to clusters (excluding Learning Support Service) September 2013 - Delegated SEN funding to clusters (including Learning Support Service) |