Jan 19, 2025, Teesside Live: 100 more places for children in Stockton with special educational needs and disabilities
NE England
Measures to create an extra 100 school places for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) will save millions and help vulnerable youngsters, say council leaders.
Headteachers across Stockton were asked how they could help more children in mainstream primary and secondary schools and meet rising demand for specialist support.
Last year 126 children were transferred into special schools, 65 so far this year, and some have been sent to expensive private places outside the town.
If it does not act on the issue, Stockton Council is predicted to go almost £35m [$43M] in the red in two years' time. Now it says it can save £15m [$19M] in the next three years by changing how it looks after SEND children.
According to its latest report, it has a "significant shortfall in provision" for children with SEND. The authority says it wants to provide "earlier intervention to reduce demand for expensive placements which are often outside the borough".
Head of education Eddie Huntington said they would make savings by educating the children in local schools rather than sending them out of town. He told the council cabinet on Thursday (January 16): "One of the growing challenges we have is providing for children with SEND.
"This is a local and national challenge, there's always been an increase in demand year on year, and it seems to be exceptional at the moment. We've had to go out to schools to say, 'What can you do to help?'"
He said council bosses looked at their "enhanced mainstream schools", attached to schools to serve vulnerable children, on which they currently spend £1.9m a year for 209 places. It is planned to change to "additional resourced provisions" and SEND units, meant to enable the children to be taught in a mainstream school environment, with new schools signing up and Department for Education funding.
'An increase in offer'
Mr Huntington said: "There's been changes in leadership, changes in lots of things, changes in the needs of those children. So we've had a full-scale consultation.
"It has resulted in one or two schools saying, 'Actually we no longer feel we can deliver this.' But those children who are in those provisions will continue until their time in school has finished.
"But actually we've had an increase in offer, which means an increase of 100 additional places. With that, there is a cost.
"But in all, actually it's going to result in a saving of £5.27m a year potentially. So it's one of those where we're investing to save."
The council wants to spend £730,000 per year on the new places, compared to £6m a year on out-of-area agency places, saving £13.6m in the next three years. It also wants to create an SEND unit at Preston Primary School, Eaglescliffe, doubling its capacity from eight to 16 places, saving another £1.6m.
Councillor Lisa Evans, deputy council leader and cabinet member for children and young people, said: "We asked heads 'are you willing to help us?' and nearly every hand in the room went up. Yes, there's the cost savings but to me it's the outcomes for the children.
"It's putting them in a mainstream school, although in a specialist unit. It gives them integration with other children, but it makes other children more accepting of children with SEN as well. So to me this is a brilliant thing."
Council leader Cllr Bob Cook said: "It's long been one of our ambitions and policies to try and bring as many special needs children back into the borough. Hopefully they'll get that 100 places to ensure they're educated locally.
'It would be stupid if we didn't spend this money'
"I think it would be stupid if we didn't spend this money to bring all those children with special needs back into the borough."
Cllr Lynn Hall, Conservative member for Hartburn, asked for evidence showing it would be effective to spend the money, whether it would deliver 100 places and over what timescale. She asked for the target numbers: "As I understand it, there are 86 students at independent schools outside the borough, and possibly 100 slightly plus in other schools.
"And I do accept it would be wonderful to bring them back. But some won't be able to transfer because of the key specialist provision which meets their EHC (education health and care) plans."
Cllr Evans replied: "I have no issue whatsoever with spending that money when we're going to make savings of £13.6m and when we'll have better outcomes for our children. Some of them may already be inside the borough in a specialist school at a higher cost.
"You know what finances are like within children's services so the savings to me, coupled with the outcomes for the children, (mean) it's absolutely the right thing to do. I think it's about integration as well."
Referring to the numbers of children coming forward for specialist provision, Mr Huntington said: "We're already predicting huge numbers. We talk about 100 places, they're going to be taken up with new applications already."
The cabinet agreed to support the change of system from September, invest £730,000 per year from the government's schools grant into them, and another £85,000 for the SEND unit at Preston Primary School.

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