Agenda item

RESOLVED: That Cabinet.

a)    Approved the publication of the statutory notice of its intent to establish a new, 50 place, SEND unit catering to pupils with a primary need of ASC, at Hunsbury Park Primary School.

b)    Noted that following the publication of the statutory notice a four week period of consultation on this matter will commence.

c)    Noted that a further, final decision will be required in July as to whether or not to establish the proposed SEND unit at Hunsbury Park Primary School.

REASONS RESOLVED:

·         The proposal would help ensure that the Council is able to fulfil its statutory obligation of providing a sufficiency of SEND places within West Northamptonshire.

·         The proposal would provide an increased number of SEND places and will help ensure that children with additional needs were able to access education in a provision that is best placed to meet their individual needs.

·         The proposal could be considered to benefit all West Northamptonshire primary schools as it will reduce the need for mainstream school settings to provide places to children with additional needs where that provision is not best placed to meet a child’s additional needs.

·         The recommended course of action was the most cost-effective and will reduce pressure on the High Needs Block (HNB) element of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) via a reduction in the number of children being required to be placed in more expensive out of county and independent provisions to meet their individual needs.

·         The Council and its customers would receive the maximum benefit from the option proposed.

ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS:

·         Do nothing: This option would result in the failure of WNC fulfilling its statutory obligation of providing a sufficiency of SEND places in West Northamptonshire. It would also result in the requirement to utilise places in increasingly distant and more expensive places within the independent sector, which would place a further strain on the HNB of the DSG. If WNC cannot demonstrate that it is able to manage its DSG allocation in a balanced position (or have plans to do so) this would result in intervention by the DfE. This option would have also prevented WNC from addressing issues relating to the timely provision of places in an appropriate setting for pupils in receipt of an EHC plan. This option was discounted for these reasons.

·         To provide the additional SEND places at another education setting: WNC officers have engaged in discussions with a significant number of area schools relating to the possible provision of additional SEND places. However, a number of important criteria must be considered and met before a setting can be considered suitable to provide SEND places;

Ø  The setting/operator must have the relevant expertise or proven track record of delivering a successful SEND provision;

Ø  The setting must be willing to provide places that would meet the type of need specified by WNC;

Ø  The capital cost of the proposed scheme must be cost effective and meet value for money considerations;

Ø  The school must be located in or close to the areas of highest demand for SEND places (to reduce home to school transport costs);

Ø  It must be possible to deliver new capacity at the setting by September 2022 (ideally) or September 2023 (at the latest);

Ø  The school must have the physical space available to accommodate an increased number of pupils on its site.

At the Chair’s invitation Councillor Fiona Baker presented the report, copies of which had been previously circulated. Members were advised that this project was part of an ambitious programme and was a statutory requirement. Action was required as there were not enough places for children and sending them to out of county schools was expensive and detrimental to the child.

The recommendations were presented to Cabinet who were advised that the item would return to Cabinet in July after the consultation has occurred.

Councillors made the following comments.

• The numbers of places needed might increase, how confident is the council in being able to provide for these going forward and where would any additional facilities be located?
• It was noted that the report stated that £12 million had been provided, would this be enough?
• Provision was also needed in mainstream school.

The Assistant Director for Education made the following comments.

• Confidence was high, there had been agreements with schools and capital was in place for those places.
• The consultation for the new 250 place special school would begin the next day.
• It was noted that the £12 million from the DfE was a larger amount that had been provided to the council in the past.

Councillor Fiona Baker made the following comments.

• It was for the benefit of the child that they be educated near their own homes.
• There would continue to be conversations with all the schools in order to work on what they could provide.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet.

a)    Approved the publication of the statutory notice of its intent to establish a new, 50 place, SEND unit catering to pupils with a primary need of ASC, at Hunsbury Park Primary School.

b)    Noted that following the publication of the statutory notice a four-week period of consultation on this matter will commence.

c)    Noted that a further, final decision will be required in July as to whether or not to establish the proposed SEND unit at Hunsbury Park Primary School.