(UK) Chesterfield primary school has $70K shortfall in SPED funding

Feb 7, 2019, Derbyshire Times: Chesterfield school teacher slams Derbyshire County Council over funding for special educational needs https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/education/chesterfield-school-teacher-slams-derbyshire-county-council-over-funding-for-special-educational-needs-1-9582089 A Chesterfield school teacher and governor have slammed Derbyshire County Council for not providing enough funding for kids with special educational needs. Sharon Smith, a teacher at Brampton Primary School in Chesterfield, said the school has a £54,000 [$70K US dollars] shortfall in funding for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). She said that the school is given a flat rate of £6,000 [$7.8K US] per SEND pupil and is given enough funding for four children. However, Brampton has a much higher than average number of SEND pupils, with 13. Without the required funding, the school may not be able to accept any further SEND pupils. She called the situation “scandalous”. Ms Smith said: “We have 13 SEN children needing a one-to-one teaching assistant. “This number is much higher than average because we have a good reputation. Students travel from Belper, Bolsover and Matlock. …