Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Children’s Services. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Children, Schools, and Families.

Cabinet approval is required to participate in the national Safety Valve Programme which sets out proposals to achieve an in year balanced budget within the High Needs Block of the Dedicated Schools Grant.

Please be advised that the Chair of Overview and Scrutiny has agreed that the call-in procedure shall not apply to this  decision. This is because the decision is urgent and any delay in implementation caused by the call-in procedure would seriously prejudice the Council's or the public's interests due to the fact that  continued growth in High Needs expenditure remains unmitigated, the cumulative deficit is currently estimated at £83m by 27/28. Therefore, this is  a critical financial risk to the Council;  and entry into the Safety Valve programme is the best option to mitigate this risk.  Haringey will be unable to complete a submission to the Department for Education within their deadline if the call-in period is not waivered. This decision will ensure that the deadline is met. Accordingly, the Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee has agreed that the decision is both reasonable in all circumstances and that it should be treated as a matter of urgency. This is in accordance with Part 4, Section H, and Paragraph 18 (a) and (b) of the Council Constitution.

The Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Families introduced the report which noted that Cabinet approval was required to participate in the national Safety Valve Programme which set out proposals to achieve an in year balanced budget within the High Needs Block of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG).

It was noted that the Council had been invited by the Department for Education (DfE) to make an application to participate in the 2022/23 Safety Valve Programme which was designed to assist local authorities in reducing overspends in their High Needs Block expenditure for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). It was explained that Haringey was predicted to have a significant SEND overspend by 2027/28 which, if unaddressed, could seriously impact council finances. It was highlighted that the government offer, whereby  High Needs Block  deficits could be eliminated, was subject to the Council developing a series of detailed plans for systemic change and service transformation.

The Cabinet Member explained that the service was already engaged in a process of wider strategic transformation of SEND Services. This was underpinned by a written Statement of Action and was in partnership with key stakeholders in schools, the wider education health and care sectors, children, young people, and their families. It was added that key strands for the Council’s approach were set out in the report and provided the basis for a SEND service which aimed to intervene early, to provide the support required, and to provide services locally in the borough.

In response to questions from Cabinet Members, the following information was noted:

-       That the Safety Valve Programme would expand on the existing written Statement of Action and SEND Strategy. It was anticipated that the Safety Valve Programme would bring additional pace to deliver the ongoing systemic changes that were already taking place within the service.

-       Overspends in the High Needs Block were not uncommon and that this was a national issue. It was explained that, following a reform in 2014, the age range for SEND had been extended but without a corresponding increase in funding.

-       Haringey had been invited to participate in the programme by the DfE but that there had been a previous wave of invites to other councils.

-       The Cabinet Member was confident that young people with SEND would not be disadvantaged by the programme. It was stated that this provided an opportunity to review and improve current practice, in addition to the ongoing work to improve how SEND services were delivered.

In response to questions from Cllr Cawley-Harrison, the following information was noted:

-       That the DSG was currently ringfenced and the deficit could not be paid by the Council’s General Fund. It was explained that, under the programme, authorities whose plans demonstrated lasting sustainability would receive funding instalments to eliminate their  deficits. It was considered that this was the best option to eliminate or minimise the deficit position in the future. It was added that some improvements made in the service over the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45