THERE are significant pressures on the budget for high needs pupils in the county’s schools.

Schools forum has been told that an estimate for expected high needs pressures so far unfunded could be as much as £277,000 for 2015/16.

The forum supports the use of £150,000 from a specific high needs reserve to help cover the shortfall.

This option sees primary schools funding £75,000 of the cost of the Special Educational Needs (SEN) protection scheme and high schools funding £75,000 of the cost of budget delegation to a Pupil Referral Units (PRU) which receives base funding topped up by the council or school for each pupil admitted.

The forum has been told of a “high degree of uncertainty” about where and when the pressures would manifest themselves.

But increased pension contributions, which would disproportionately impact on special schools, amount to £138,000 of the estimated sum.

There was a projected underspend of £927,000 on the county’s 2014/15 Direct Schools Grant (DSG).

This was almost entirely due to an underspend on funding places for 2 year olds (2YO).

However, the expectation was that the Department for Education would nationally reduce the 2YO grant for 2015/16 by the underspend.

High Needs was forecast to overspend by £108,000 further adding to future cost pressures.

As a result, the forum has been told that the projected 2YO underspend should not be considered for meeting any shortfall for 2015/16.

Local government pension costs are rising by 4.4% in 2015/16 and 6.2% in 2016/17 in addition to teachers pension cost increases of 2.3% from September 2015.

There is a disproportionate impact on special schools because of the number of support staff employed.

An equivalent 6%  increase on high needs top ups would cost £202,000 in 2015/16 and a further £202,000k in 2016/17.

Given the other pressures on high needs this has been considered unaffordable for all schools over both years.

The forum’s budget working group assessed a number of options before settling on partial support through the high needs reserve and related recommendations to make such support viable.

Proposed changes to the funding for PRUs will be debated by the forum when it meets next month.

PRU services have been centralised into a single unit in Hereford.

Later this month, the council is due to make a decision on putting the provision of pupil referral services out to tender.

This procurement exercise would take in the pupil referral function, the behaviour outreach function and home and hospital education.