SEND Capital Funding Consultation
Message from the Special Education Trust Board –
Nottinghamshire County Council has got the green light to press ahead with plans to access its share of a new national £215m funding programme.
The Special Provision Capital Grant is to support local authorities to invest in provision for children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and disabilities aged 0-25 years to improve the quality and range of provision available to the local authority. It is intended for the children and young people with education, health and care plans for whom Councils are responsible and will be released over the next three years.
Both locally and nationally the demand for special school places continues to increase. Special Schools and Academies within the County have reached capacity, meaning that more children and young people are being taught in schools much further from their home, sometimes out of county.
We are very keen to gain the views of as many children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities as possible, and their parents/carers. It is also important that we hear from staff working in school settings and those from the broader special educational needs and disabilities sector.
Whilst we welcome this new fund, we are also extremely realistic in what this relatively small amount of capital funding will provide, given that the cost of a brand new special school, for example, would be well over £10 million.
The County Council is asking three broad questions, which we hope will help to shape spending priorities over the next three years. The consultation will run until Wednesday 13 December and can be found on the County Council’s website www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/SENDreview