A spokesperson for Halton Borough Council says:
“Nationally there has been a significant increase in demand for support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. Department for Education data shows that the number of pupils attending a specialist setting has increased from 5.6% in 2012 to 8.5% in 2016. The number and percentage of children in independent schools has also increased over the same period from 4.5% to 6.3%.
“A TES article by Jonathan Owen published on 8th December 2017 reports: ‘The 2017/2018 projected funding gap in high needs budgets – targeted at pupils with disabilities, behavioural problems or ill health – is more than three times what it was in 2014/2015.’
“Despite funding increases nationally and the introduction of a new High Needs Funding Formula for 2018/2019, the Local Government Association has warned that many local authorities are faced with a significant gap in their funding for support for High Needs.
“Demand in Halton has continued to outstrip the resources available with the high needs budget continuing to overspend in 2017/2018. The estimated funding gap for 2018/2019 is £2.1 million.
“To meet this shortfall a range of reductions have been agreed across all sectors. Reluctantly Halton special schools were asked to consider aligning their funding back to the same level they agreed following a review in 2016/2017, a reduction of £510 per pupil.
“Despite the challenge that this reduction will present each school, the funding change has been agreed locally. The special schools will continue to receive additional funding where there are increases in pupil numbers. The LA has committed to working with its special schools in 2018/2019 to try and find a more sustainable basis for their funding.”
Sara Ainsworth, Headteacher, Brookfields School, Widnes:
“The funding challenge facing the special schools in Halton reflects the severity of funding cuts being faced by similar provision across the country as demand for places and complexity of children increases at a greater rate than the funding.
“As schools we are facing extremely challenging times in setting budgets and maintaining those crucial things that allow us to best meet pupil need and minimise the negative impact of the funding cuts.
“At this point in time we do not know the full extent of this impact but we will continue to work collaboratively with each other and the local authority to ensure that the best possible provision can be maintained for the children that we serve within the financial constraints placed upon us, and our children will remain central in all decisions.”
Cllr Tom McInerney – Lead Member for Children, Young People and Families:
“We are very fortunate in Halton to have four exceptional special schools with dedicated staff who work tirelessly to support children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.
“Unfortunately the growing funding gap between what we receive from the Department for Education and what we require to support our children and young people means that we have had to review and reduce the funding levels of our special schools for 2018/2019. We will continue to work in partnership with our four special schools during 2018/2019 to mitigate the impact of these reductions on staffing and revise our funding formula for future years.”