July 13, 2021, Radio Exe Devon: Devon special education £50 million in deficit https://www.radioexe.co.uk/news-and-features/local-news/devon-special-education-50-million-in-deficit/ SW England
Members of Devon County Council’s ruling cabinet are urging the government to clarify funding for special education after Devon’s spending deficit on the service rose to almost £50 million [$69M U.S.].
Devon County Council’s financial report for 2020/21 reveals an underspend of just £35,000 on total revenue, but the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) budget shortfall increased by £29 million in the year to a current total of £49 million….
Cabinet member for finance, Councillor Phil Twiss (Conservative, Feniton & Honiton) says the SEND deficit is “climbing at a rather concerning rate.”…
Cllr Twiss added: “We need assurances from the government that they will help us get that figure down.
“We need to focus on the people and how we can best service their needs. That’s something that is continually ongoing at the council and, as we hopefully begin to emerge from the worst of the pandemic, then we can take a long hard look and decide if we’re doing the best we possibly can for the service.”
The recently appointed cabinet member for children’s services and schools, Councillor Andrew Leadbetter (Conservative, Wearside & Topsham), says SEND funding is “one of the biggest pressures” on the council.
“At the moment we have an overspend which is being put into a separate pot, ring-fenced as an overspend, and one of the things moving forward in my new role is how we deal with that overspend.
“One of the other things I’ve been doing is lobbying the government to give us more money,” Cllr Leadbetter said, adding: “The government has many pressures on it, but education is particularly important because children are our future.”
Cllr Leadbetter says they are making some changes, such as bringing some outsourced contracts back under direct council control next year and building new special schools such as one at Okehampton that will cater for 80 to 100 pupils….
“This is real money that is being spent and there will be a day of reckoning, so leaving it on the council’s credit card – as it were – is okay for now but we need the solution from government about this, not just for Devon but right across the country.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said that Devon’s high-needs funding for 2021-22 will be £87 million [$120M], a 9.8 per-cent per head increase on last year. “We have announced the biggest increase in school funding in a decade and increased high needs funding for councils to provide services for families and children with special educational needs and disabilities to more than £8 billion this year – an increase of nearly a quarter over two years….
The SEND shortfall is one of the reasons highlighted by county treasurer Mary Davis as to why the council faces “considerable financial challenges” in the years ahead. She will present the figures to the authority’s ruling cabinet on Wednesday (14 July)….
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