Source · Select Committees · Women and Equalities Committee
Recommendation 16
16
Not Addressed
We agree that catch up funding should be weighted towards children who have been “hardest...
Recommendation
We agree that catch up funding should be weighted towards children who have been “hardest hit” by disruption to their education. We know that many children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) will be in the hardest hit group; many received little or no support earlier this year. We know that pupils with SEND are likely to fall further behind without commensurate help. Pupils with SEND in mainstream schools have often borne the brunt of the dysfunctional SEND system, missing out on support for their needs through a lack of ring-fenced funding. We Unequal impact? Coronavirus, disability and access to services: full Report 45 are very concerned that catch up funding allocations do not adequately reflect this. In the light of experiences earlier this year, it is unacceptable that the £1 billion catch up premium does not include ring-fenced funding for pupils with SEND in mainstream schools. We recommend that funding for the remaining tranches of the universal catch up allocation be increased by around £211 million, to allow mainstream schools to receive £240 per pupil with an EHC plan or receiving SEN Support, ring-fenced for their catch-up support in this academic year. We further recommend the Department procure an additional strand of specialist provision in the National Tutoring Programme, designed to support pupils with EHC plans and those receiving SEN Support, across all schools. (Paragraph 105) Engagement and communications with disabled people
Government response summary AI-generated
The government's response discusses the Equality Hub's work on making coronavirus information accessible, completely failing to address the recommendation for increased and ring-fenced catch-up funding for pupils with SEND or an additional strand of specialist provision.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government · verbatim extract
Not Addressed
The DfE has applied additional weighting to specialist settings—special schools, alternative provision and hospital schools—recognising the significantly higher per pupil costs they face. DfE have looked carefully at the basis on which funding is allocated to SEND pupils and have extended the higher rate of £240 per place to special units within mainstream schools. Those schools’ second and third payment allocations will be uplifted to ensure they receive the full amount during this academic year. All schools should use the total catch up premium funding available to them as a single total from which to prioritise support for particular pupils, including children with SEND or EHCPs, according to their need. To help schools make the best use of this funding, the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) has published a support guide for schools with evidence-based approaches to catch up for all students and a further school planning guide: 2020 to 2021. Fourth Special Report of Session 2019–21 11 DfE are committed to ensuring that the National Tutoring Programme remains as inclusive as possible. When selecting our approved Tuition Partners, DfE worked with the Education Endowment Foundation to ensure that tuition providers had relevant experience in working with children who have SEND in both mainstream and specialist settings so that as many pupils as possible can be supported. DfE understands that it is important that tutors are able to adapt their provision to suit a range of needs, however it is equally important to recognise that academic tutoring will not meet the needs of every pupil. That is why school leaders have the flexibility to spend the £650 universal catch-up premium (which is weighted towards specialist settings in recognition of the higher costs of provision in these settings) in the way that best meets the needs of their pupils. 26 of our 33 providers are able to support students with SEND, with 17 of these also able to support students in special school settings. In February 2021, the Government appointed Sir Kevan Collins as Education Recovery Commissioner to advise how to help pupils make up their learning over the course of this Parliament. The Education Recovery Commissioner will engage with parents, pupils and teachers in the development of this broader approach which will examine a range of options to help education settings use evidence-based interventions to support their pupils to make up lost learning. DfE will share further details in due course. As part of this, also in February 2021, DfE announced a £700m plan to continue to support young people catch up on lost learning, including an expansion of our successful tutoring programmes. This includes a further allocation of £83m to expand the National Tutoring Programme for 5 to16-year-olds in 2021/22. National Strategy for Disabled People
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