Purpose

That Cabinet approve the receipt of the Experts at Hand grant provided by the Department of Education to implement elements of the SEND Reform programme.

Decision

RESOLVED:

1. That Cabinet note the receipt of the Experts at Hand grant provided by the Department of Education to implement elements of the SEND Reform programme.
2. That Cabinet agree to delegate authority to the Executive Director of Children, Families and Lifelong Learning (CFLL), in consultation with the Cabinet Member for CFLL, to allocate funding from the Experts at Hand grant in accordance with the Surrey SEND Reform plan 30 June 2026 and the terms of the Department for Education grant and to negotiate and approve all consequential agreements necessary to effect these allocations, to include joint commissioning with the ICB and signing a Memorandum of Understanding to enable the ICB to commission health elements.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

Cabinet approval will mean that the grant can be allocated and used in line with the guidance issued by DfE, the key elements of which are outlined below. Without agreeing to the allocation of the grant in this way, SCC will be unable to fulfil the requirements of the SEND Reform plan, which will result in SCC not receiving the DfE funding to resolve up to 90% of the accumulated Dedicated Schools Grant deficit at end March 2026, as previously communicated by DfE when it closed the Safety Valve programme.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Children, Families, Lifelong Learning & Culture Select Committee)