Agenda item

(To receive a report from Mark Popplewell, Head of Finance, Children's Services, which outlines to the Schools' Forum the Education Funding Agency high needs funding guidance arrangements for Alternative Provision; and provides information on the Alternative Provision providers in Lincolnshire and their present funding arrangements)

The Forum gave consideration to a report from Mark Popplewell, Head of Finance, Children's Services, which outlined the Education Funding Agency high needs funding guidance arrangements for Alternative Provision; and provided information relating to the Alternative Providers in Lincolnshire and their present funding arrangements.

In guiding the Forum through the report the Head of Finance, Children's Services highlighted that the Schools Forum regulations outlined that the arrangements for Alternative Provision (AP) should be discussed at a local level, with engagement not only from the Local Authority, but also form the mainstream schools and academies, pupil referral units and AP in academies and free schools.  It was highlighted that the Education Funding Agency had advised that it was in the interests of LA's, it schools and academies and institutions offering AP, to agree a referral process.

It was reported that place funding for AP providers was funded by the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) and that any increase in places would have to be met from Lincolnshire's DSG.  It was therefore felt that cost transparency was a very important feature of the new high needs funding arrangements, and that the Schools' Forum should be aware of how AP was funded; top up funding rates for AP institutions and where top up funding and place funding came from.

The Forum was advised that a standard top up funding rate was often set for each Pupil Referral Unit, AP academy, or AP free school, which reflected the overall budget needed to deliver the service for pupils and students.  The Forum was advised further that the Government had made it clear that where growth had increased that LA DSG's high needs DSG block would not be funded for increases, therefore the LA needed to ensure that this area was monitored and controlled.

Details pertaining to the Lincoln Teaching and Learning Centre (LTLC); Pilgrim School were contained within the report presented.  The Forum was advised that the LA was still awaiting information from the Acorn Free School (a copy of the request letter was attached at Appendix A to the report).  The report recommended that a robust initial referral Gateway Panel led by the LA was established for placement into all alternative provision.  This arrangement would then provide a control mechanism to safeguard the DSG financial position.

The Chairman advised the Forum that he had received a letter from Jerry Tucker, Head Teacher at the Acorn Free School, which he had passed to the Executive Director of Children's Services to respond to.  The Executive Director for Children's Services advised that a meeting had been arranged with the Local Authority and Governors from the Acorn Free School. 

It was outlined that for dual-registered pupils accessing Alternative Provision, the Local Authority had no statutory duty to provide transport. The Local Authority plans were to give a terms notice on; and for the school to source and pay for the transport in future.  

In conclusion, to ensure that the Lincolnshire's DSG and schools budgets were maximised effectively at a time when the LA faced financial challenges, the LA wanted to ensure processes were in place to make sure this area was closely monitored and the Schools' Forum were asked to agree on how place number growth would be managed in the future.

During discussion reference was made to:-

·         The need to ensure that good value for money was reached in order to maximise funding received;

·         That school's needed guidance with regard to Alternative Provision as they would remain responsible for students on their roll who they placed and would be inspected in respect of these arrangements.  There needed to be checks to ensure that what was being received represented good value for money; and

·         The fact that some students were having more than one place i.e. mainstream provision for three days; alternative provision for two days; some go straight to the AP pathway outright; others go to alternative initially, and then the young people come back to mainstream education.  This was considered beneficial for some pupils; and

·         The Executive Director for Children's Services advised that a single standard transport charge for dual-registered pupils could be applied to schools for pupils accessing Alternative Provision which would not disadvantage schools because of their location.  The single standard transport charge approach was supported by the Forum as being fair to all schools.

RESOLVED

1.    That the contents of the reported be noted.

2.    The support be given for the Education Funding Agency's and Local Authority's desire for transparency and openness of Alternative Provision providers full costs across all institutions allowing Local Authority's schools and academies to make placement decisions on the basis of the cost and quality of what is on offer.

3.    That support be given for the Pilgrim school delivery model particularly the short term assessment provision approved through the referral gateway panel.

4.    That agreement be given to a consistent referral panel process for pre-exclusion places in Alternative Provision.