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Dear colleagues

This month’s update outlines the transition of the Developing Local Provision (DLP) project into broader SEND development, integrating with the Delivering Better Value (DBV) Programme and Ordinarily Available Guidance (OAG). It includes updates on project timelines, financial arrangements, and reporting deadlines.

We also highlight progress on High Needs Funding (HNF), Exceptional Special Needs (ESN) funding, and the SEND Accelerated Progress Plan (APP), focused on addressing weaknesses from previous inspections and improving outcomes for children with SEND. Additionally, we’re launching a new Aspiring SENCo course with the SEND Advisory Service and sharing details on our preparations for the upcoming OFSTED inspection, and tribunal communication. 

I hope you find these updates helpful and informative. We’d love to hear your thoughts, so please feel free to reach out if there’s anything you’d like to see. We're always working to provide the best content to meet your needs.

May I take this opportunity to thank you all for your continued dedication and hard work in supporting children with SEND. Your efforts make a real difference, and I deeply appreciate everything you do.

With my very best wishes for a relaxing and well-deserved Easter break!

Helen

Helen Ellis
Director of SEND and Inclusion

Next Steps for the Developing Local Provision (DLP) Project & Integration into SEND Development Work

Following the recent decision from Children’s Service Leadership Team, we are now transitioning the practices and principles established through the DLP into business-as-usual within our broader SEND development work. This transition programme includes the integration with the Delivering Better Value (DBV) Programme and the Ordinarily Available Guidance (OAG) framework, to ensure a sustainable and lasting impact.

Clear updates and defined timelines have been provided to facilitate this process, to ensure all projects receive the necessary support and to ensure consistent alignment with the broader SEND development priorities. Please note that this update does not include the DLP Special Schools projects, which are at the stage of successfully concluding Year 1 of Phase 2. Further updates regarding DLP Special Schools project will be shared separately on 12 May 2025.

Financial Arrangements and Next Steps

For a smooth and sustainable transition, all underspend or remaining funds within the DLP allocation pot, will remain assigned to their respective projects. There will be no clawback of funds; however, projects with remaining allocations must submit a brief project plan for the next academic year to demonstrate how these resources will be used to sustain impact. Oversight of this work will be provided by the School Improvement Advisors.

All remaining funds will be released by July 2025, following the submission of the termly financial report and brief project plan, where applicable. Projects that have fully utilised their funds will transition directly to the reporting timeline outlined below, with no further requirements.

Key Reporting and Proposed Submission Timeline

• 28 April 2025 – DLP School Survey Template (Prep version) will be shared with all DLP Leads for distribution to schools within their projects.
• 09 May 2025 – DLP Spring Term Data submissions due.
• 12 May 2025 – DLP School Survey Form goes live.
• 02 June 2025 – DLP Projects share financial report.
• 09 June 2025 – DLP Projects receive funding/allocation update.
• 30 June 2025 –  Mini project plan due (only for Projects with remaining funds).
• 31 July 2025 – All remaining funds within DLP pot released
• 14 July 2025 – DLP School Survey submission deadline.
• 12 September 2025 – DLP Summer Term Data submission due.
• 20 October 2025 – Final collation/End of Project report submission.

We are committed to providing support throughout this process and to ensure that all queries are addressed effectively, we will be holding a DLP Drop-in session on the 10th of April 2025 at 3:45pm.

Thank you for your invaluable contributions to the DLP project. Your ongoing engagement is essential as we continue our collective efforts to improve SEND provision across our schools.

Delivering Better Value – Workstream 2

This workstream focuses on the effectiveness of High Needs Funding (HNF) arrangements and its related policies and procedures.

The final deadline for the sample returns was 28th March 2025.  Many thanks for the information that was received from schools. With a total return rate of 68%, the spend analysis could proceed and is underway. 

The workstream is now moving into the planning and implementation for the options development phase. This will also connect to the DBV workstream 1 activities about the needs that can and should be met in mainstream, resource Base, and special schools.

A series of webinars are being planned for the start of the summer term to:

• Provide a summary of themes from the spend analysis
• Share plans for the options development and invite expression of interests to support the task and finish groups that run during the summer term.

More information about the webinar dates will be shared by 11 April 2025.

For any queries or further information please contact the team at DeliveringBetterValue@birmingham.gov.uk.

Exceptional Special Needs Process

The ESN Process involves the application for Exceptional Special Needs (ESN) funding for special schools and mainstream schools, above and beyond the allocated top-up funding. ESN funding is currently being reviewed alongside the DBV (Delivering Better Value) workstream 2. For the interim period, all ESN funding requests will be aligned with the Annual Review process. This involves linking ESN funding requests as part of an Annual Review, when any changes in need and provision are considered. The review process can provide a mechanism for schools to submit the necessary evidence and reports to support their funding requests.

We appreciate that delays in considering requests and communication regarding ESN funding applications can have a significant financial impact on schools, especially when setting budgets for the new financial year. Schools will continue to receive their usual place funding, support units and top up funding while SENAR process any requests for ESN funding.

Where ESN funding is currently in place, the agreement will be honoured for the period set. The school will then be required to put any new or continuing requests in alongside the annual review -if the review is not due, the expectation is it will be called early to bring the processes together.  In preparation for this, where we have recently agreed special school ESN funding this has been agreed for the period until the next review is due. Please note ESN funding cannot be requested for back dated claims of support already provided. Placement panel/tribunal team may still award ESN funding to support transition to a new placement if there is evidence provided as part of Governing Body Response. 

ESN funding requests are likely to be requested following a significant change in the child’s needs or behaviour which may be as a response to changes at home or school. School will have identified that intensive short to medium term specialist intervention is required and that there’s a clear time-limited outcome to be achieved. There will be exceptions where the child or young person needs additional specialist support or equipment for an extended period of time. For the majority of requests, there will be additional professional involvement external to the school, such as specialist education services, health or Birmingham Children’s Trust.

Process to request ESN Funding:

1. School conducts annual review
2. Tick the box on the annual review paperwork to indicate ESN funding may be required and attach the ESN funding form.
3. Outcome of decision communicated to the school, by Case Officer within 6 weeks

SEND Accelerated Progress Plan

As a result of a SEND Local Area inspection in 2018 and subsequent re-visit in 2021 we are subject to continuing monitoring and oversight by the DfE and NHS in the form of six monthly stocktakes.

These are to assess progress against our Accelerated Progress Plan (APP) and to stand down relevant areas where it is deemed we have made sufficient progress.

The latest stocktake was held on 6 February and out of the 10 remaining Areas of Significant Weakness (AoSW) we were deemed to have made sufficient progress in the area of parental engagement and as a result:

• Formal monitoring of Area 9 of the APP-Parental Engagement, will be ceased.
• We saw and heard how the PCF collaborates with other parent carer groups, including "Be Empowered" and "Grow."
• This positive outcome is as a result, of a great deal of commitment and hard work on the part of the local authority, the Integrated Care Board, families and front-line staff across education, health and social care.
• Thank you for all that you are doing to support some of the most vulnerable children and young people in Birmingham. Please do continue with these efforts and build on the successes you have already achieved.

The main theme of feedback on our remaining 9 Areas of Significant Weakness (AoSW) was that while we demonstrated a range of activity taking place to accelerate improvement, we were lacking evidence of measurable positive impacts and improved outcomes as a result.

Our focus over the next six months in preparation for the 42-month review in the early Autumn will be to ensure that we are able to provide this additional evidence in the remaining focus areas of:

• Area 2 – The initial inspection found that inter-agency working was ineffective.
• Area 5 –  Co-ordination of assessments of children and young people’s needs between agencies was poor.
• Area 6 – The quality of EHC plans was variable.
• Area 7 –  Waiting times were too long and children and young people were not seen quickly enough by therapists or professionals in CDCs: Neurodevelopmental (ND) pathways remain the biggest challenge, as demand outstrips supply.
• Area 8 – Co-production was not embedded in the local area.
• Area 10 – There was a great deal of parental dissatisfaction.
• Area 11 –  Pupils with SEND make weak academic progress when compared with all pupils nationally.
• Area 12 – Pupils with SEND attend less often and are excluded more frequently than other pupils in Birmingham and all pupils nationally:
• Area 13 –  Not enough young people with SEND are entering employment or supported employment and the proportion of adults with learning disabilities in paid employment is below the national average.

This will be achieved by:

Strengthening the assurance on delivery and outcomes, so as programme management is strengthened through the next phase, it should be a priority to ensure clear transparent reporting that draws qualitative and quantitative information sources together to provide a balanced view on progress and delivery.

Identifying the success criteria and the specific actions required to work towards stepping down the areas of monitoring through the APP. Identifying accurately and consistently the actions needed to close the gap and fully deliver on the APP.

Providing clarity about how the Partnership are making their judgements on current progress against the APP, including how progress against each area is monitored effectively and how it is determined what the levels of progress and impact are.

Identifying the actions associated with the wider improvements that take the system beyond delivery of the APP and builds the depth of improvement activities that will continuously improve and develop how children and young people with special educational needs and their families get good and consistent outcomes.

Ofsted/CQC Area SEND Inspection Readiness

The Local Area Partnership’s efforts to transition from ‘inspection preparation’ to ‘inspection readiness’, continues with unwavering dedication and contribution from our colleagues across the partnership. Collectively we have made significant progress to embed the core principles of the   into our daily practice. As a Local Area Partnership, our focus remains, children, young people, and families at the heart of everything we do, understanding what it feels like to be a child or young person with SEND, what it actually feels like for children and young people with SEND growing up in Birmingham and also what it feels like for their families.

Our Journey Recap

The 2018 Birmingham Area SEND Inspection resulted in 13 identified Areas of Significant Weakness (AoSW).  Following a further inspection in 2021, 12 AoSW remained, leading to the appointment of John Coughlan as SEND Commissioner for Birmingham.

The Ofsted/CQC Area SEND Inspection Framework sets out 3 potential inspection outcomes:

1. The local area partnerships arrangements typically lead to positive experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND
2. The local area partnerships arrangements lead to inconsistent experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND
3. There are widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns

Whilst considering what it is like to be a child or young person with SEND in the local area,  the experiences and outcomes for children and young people with SEND, what the local area partnership is doing well and what needs to be improved and whether any priority areas have been identified.

We have been working hard as a Local Area Partnership to produce, implement and embed a SEND and AP Improvement Plan that is fit for purpose and actively identifies and responds to the needs of the children, young people and families in Birmingham and our identified areas for improvement. The SEND and AP Improvement Board, chaired by John Coughlan has responsibility for overseeing and scrutinising the Local Area Partnership performance against the SEND and AP Improvement Plan.

The plan sets out our 12 priority areas with associated senior responsible officers and action leads to support operational and strategic traction:

• Early Identification
• Graduated Response
• Transitions
• Education Review
• Locality Working
• Communication
• SEND Partnership Approach
• Data Quality
• Educational Safeguarding
• Preparing for Adulthood
• Early Years
• Alternative Provision

It is important that we continue to work together to:

• Keep abreast of all SEND and AP associated improvement activity
• Ensure that we are learning from multi-agency audits, proactively reading and sharing the Multi-Agency Audit Summary and Full Outcome Reports
• Encourage professional curiosity – partnership communication, collaboration and co-production

We have several key coproduced strategies in place that detail our pledge to improving the outcomes and lived experience of children and young people across Birmingham, please take the time to read and maintain familiarity with our agreed priorities and commitments, found within our:

•      

We also have our , where key information, updates and signposting is held, we encourage and welcome feedback and suggestions to improve our Local Offer. We are also happy to respond to any queries you have regarding the Ofsted/CQC Area SEND Inspection Framework or the SEND and AP Improvement Plan and associated activity. Please contact Helen Ellis Director for SEND and Inclusion helen.ellis@birmingham.gov.uk

We will continue to provide regular Ofsted/CQC Area SEND Inspection Readiness updates as we move closer to embedding this activity across our Business as Usual arrangements. 

Thank you for your continued support.

Do you have any Aspiring SENCOs?

Drb Ignite Trust have developed an Aspiring SENCo course, providing opportunities for teachers who have a passion for supporting pupils with SEND to begin their journey and professional development to becoming a SENCo. The programme has been developed in recognition of the increasing complexity of needs within schools and the recruitment difficulties with regards to and provides aspiring SENCos with an understanding of the role, the responsibilities and the processes that SENCos work within. It is intended to be a graduated approach to a teacher completing the NPQSENCO award.

Drb Ignite Trust are now in collaboration with the SEND Advisory Service in developing this programme further across the city. As well as providing the opportunity to upskill professionals to potentially become qualified SENCos, the course also supports the knowledge and skills of the teaching workforce to better meet and understand the needs of the pupils with SEND in their classrooms – this can provide valuable capacity and support to the SENCOs within schools, who are recognised to often be struggling with capacity and wellbeing within the education sector.

We are keen to pilot the development and delivery an aspiring SENCo training package across 2 to 3 local areas, before offering this opportunity wider across the city - this would be open initially to primary and secondary schools. We are looking for experienced SENCos to co-design the training package and/or to co-deliver the programme with cohorts of between 8 to 10 teachers in each.

Please get in touch if you are:

• interested in knowing more about this,
• have an experienced SENCo who would be interested in developing others,
• and/or teachers within your school who may be aspiring to the SENCo role but want to understand this further

Key contacts:

Heather Wood at heather.wood@birmingham.gov.uk or Ali Quinn (drb Ignite Trust Lead) at aquinn@drbignitemat.org

Tribunal Communication to Special Schools and Resource Bases

As a result of the phase transfer process, we have started to receive appeals and are expecting more as the appeal deadline hasn't passed yet. Phase transfer appeals are being expedited, this results in tight deadlines for returning witness statements and additional evidence. The expedited process is outside of SENAR's control and is due to the tribunal's approach to prioritising these appeals, as placements need to start in September. SENAR will provide schools with as much notice as possible when an expedited appeal is received and will continue to work in partnership to get the best outcomes for the children and families.