Bishop Martin recently visited Netherton CE Primary to see their provision for children with additional needs and disabilities and understand the lack of funding in this area, particularly for schools in Dudley Borough.
Netherton Primary is part of the Diocese of Worcester Multi-Academy Trust (DoWMAT) and Bishop Martin met with Headteacher Kathryn Harvey, CEO of DoWMAT, Vicki Shelley and DoWMAT’s Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Coordinator, Clare Stockford.
Kathryn explained how Netherton School is making innovative use of the funding available to them, supporting 28.5% of children who either require SEN support or have an EHCP (Educational Health Care Plan) with three different rooms – the Burrow which caters specifically for reception children, the Hive, which is focussed on children in other years with an EHCP (Educational Health Care Plan) and the Nest, which is used by up to 82 children each week who might need additional support outside of the mainstream classroom. This provision is very much needed in Netherton, but the shortage of funding means that it may not be able to continue in the long term.
Vicki Shelley, CEO of DoWMAT, said: “It is well-known that the SEND system nationally is broken and it’s a real battle for all involved to get children the appropriate support. This includes schools, parents and local authorities. However, in Dudley this is particularly acute, with significant funding differences compared to Worcestershire’s funding for children with similar needs. This makes it increasingly difficult to provide the level of support that is required, creating disparity between children within the schools across our trust.
Kathryn added: “We aim to be an inclusive school. These are all children of God who need love and nurturing and should be able to flourish. However, they can’t do that if they don’t have the right support, which requires the right funding. Too many of our conversations are based around finances rather than the needs of each child. We need equity in the system with funding taking into account different levels of need and deprivation.”
It is even possible for children to have an EHCP without any funding at all attached. This makes it hugely difficult for schools to fulfil the legal obligations which come with these plans. Schools need to make up the funding for additional staff required from their general budget meaning that Headteachers need to be creative when meeting the needs of all children.
Kathryn said: “With the current needs of our pupils across our school, we anticipating having up to 30 children with EHCPs in place in the future and each of those children have individual needs. However, the current funding levels mean that we can’t afford to employ the staff we would like to meet their needs on an ongoing basis.”
The school works hard to find creative solutions to the issues, developing or buying in resources for different groups of children. Children working in the Hive will have individual time with the leaders of different subjects to ensure they have access to the support they need to develop. Within the room, children rotate around different activities, some of which they can do unsupervised to enable staff to work with different individuals on key learning activities. They will also return to their classes for forest school, PE and other subjects so they don’t miss out.
Portia in year 6 spends some of her time in the Nest focussing on specific tasks. She will be moving onto a specialist secondary school education next year. She said: “I like going into the Nest because I get to sit with my friends and when I go back to my classroom I get frustrated because I find it hard. I’ve been doing much better since I’ve been able to spend time out of the classroom and I’m excited to be going to special school next year.”
DoWMAT SENDCo Clare Stockford said: “There is not enough external specialist provision so there is no choice but to support children with a wide range of additional needs in school. We passionately believe that our schools should be inclusive and welcoming of all children, but we do need the right funding to ensure this can be achieved. Alongside the bespoke teaching, Netherton school runs anxiety groups and provides extra support with things like resilience, anger management and social skills to help children thrive. None of this is possible without the right funding.”
Bishop Martin spent an afternoon in Netherton School, speaking to staff about the challenges and also asking the children about their experiences. He said: “I can see how much Netherton CE Primary is trying to do its best for every child in a really challenging situation. Kathryn and her staff are doing amazingly creative work in this area, and you can really see the difference that additional funding would make.”
Vicki said: “We were delighted that Bishop Martin was able to come along to hear about the work that is being done in this school to help all children to thrive. We hope this will help to raise the profile of the real shortage of funding in this area – particularly for schools in Dudley Borough. This is a national challenge which can only be addressed by working collaboratively with all stakeholders. Indeed, a House of Commons Education Committee inquiry is currently underway.”
