High needs funding arrangements: 2023 to 2024
Information for local authorities, schools and colleges about high needs funding arrangements for the 2023 to 2024 financial and academic year.
Applies to England
Documents
Details
High needs funding: 2023 to 2024 operational guide
Read the operational guide to:
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find out how the high needs funding streams work for all types of provision
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help local authorities plan their 2023 to 2024 financial year high needs funding
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help schools, colleges and providers plan their 2023 to 2024 academic year
Special free schools adjustment: a guide for local authorities
This guide explains how local authorities’ dedicated schools grants are adjusted for new and growing special free schools.
High needs place change process
Read the guidance for an overview of the place change process for the 2023 to 2024 academic year, including how to determine place numbers and a timeline.
How to complete the high needs place change workbook
Local authorities should use these instructions to help complete the high needs place change workbook for providers in your area.
Hospital education funding: guidance
Read the hospital education funding guidance to find out how local authorities can apply for changes to their hospital education funding for 2023 to 2024 financial year.
High needs pupil and student numbers in the school census and individual learner record (ILR): 2021 to 2022 academic year
The high needs student numbers data workbook shows:
- the actual number of pupils in special academies and special free schools recorded in the spring 2022 school census, including the place numbers for the 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 academic years
- the post-16 high needs student numbers for further education colleges, independent learning providers, 16 to 19 academies and 16 to 19 free schools, as recorded in the 2021 to 2022 ILR R14 data return – it also shows the place numbers for the 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 academic years (see the ‘ILR actuals and published places’ tab)
- the post-16 high needs student numbers for special post-16 institutions (SPIs) as recorded in the 2021 to 2022 ILR R14 data return – it also shows the place numbers for the 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 academic years (see the ‘SPI actuals & published places’ tab)
High needs place change request outcomes: 2023 to 2024
The high needs place change notification outcomes inform the funded place numbers for the academic year 2023 to 2024 in academies, free schools, further education (FE) colleges and independent learning providers.
Local authorities and providers can raise a query with us about their place numbers for 2023 to 2024 if they are not as expected.
Read the ‘Enquiry window’ section of the ‘High needs place change process: academic year 2023 to 2024’ document to find out how to submit an enquiry.
The enquiry window opens on Wednesday, 18 January 2023 and closes on Friday, 3 February 2023.
Pupil referral unit (PRU) and alternative provision (AP) academy additional funding allocations for 2023 to 2024
This document has been produced to assist local authorities in making the 3.4% additional allocation to maintained alternative provision (AP) schools (normally referred to as pupil referral units or PRUs), and AP academies (including AP free schools) for financial year 2023 to 2024, in accordance with the dedicated schools grant (DSG) extra condition of grant, and guidance on implementing that condition in annex 2 to the high needs operational guide for 2023 to 2024.
Import/export adjustments 2023 to 2024: for local authorities to notify ESFA of data errors
As last year, you can notify us if the January 2023 school census or February 2023 individualised learner record (ILR) R06 data used in the import/export adjustment was incorrect at the time returns were submitted by the school or college. This guidance explains the process for you to notify us of data errors which may impact on your funding.
Further information
Read the schools operational guide: 2023 to 2024 to help plan the local implementation of the funding system for the 2023 to 2024 financial year.
Read the high needs funding 2022 to 2023: operational guide for information about the 2022 to 2023 academic and financial year funding arrangements.
You can read the national funding formula for schools and high needs for further details of the NFF funding system for 2023 to 2024.
View the provisional national funding formula allocation tables for schools, high needs and central school services blocks for 2023 to 2024.
Last updated 8 June 2023 + show all updates
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The import/export guidance 2023 to 2024 for local authorities to notify ESFA of adjustments has now been added
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We've added March 2023 updates to the High needs funding: 2023 to 2024 operational guide: - The School and Early Years Finance (England) Regulations links have been updated to newly published 2023 regulations. - Section 1.1: updated to advise when the High needs funding: 2023 to 2024 operational guide will next be updated. - Section 2.1: March 2023 updates section added - Section 4: updated information on the publication of the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan - Section 7.3: additional information on funding deductions for alternative provision free schools - Section 10.6: academic year updated - Section 14.3: academic year and funding amount updated - Section 14.5: additional information about funding for new and growing special free schools - Section 14.8: additional information about funding levels for new alternative provision free schools - Section 14.9: academic year and funding amount updated - Section 14.10: academic year and funding amount updated
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We've added the 'High needs place change data outcomes 2023 to 2024' spreadsheet and the 'High needs place change request outcomes: 2023 to 2024' section to this page.
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We've added the 'Pupil referral unit and AP academy additional funding allocations for 2023 to 2024' section and spreadsheet, and included references to this within the 'High needs funding: 2023 to 2024 operational guide'.
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Updated the high needs student and pupil numbers spreadsheet for 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 academic year.
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We've updated the high needs operations guide to reflect changes in the Autumn Statement 2022.
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Updated to include the high needs place change process: academic year 2023 to 2024 guidance, hospital education funding guidance 2023 to 2024, how to complete the high needs workbook guidance for 2024 to 2024 and the high needs student and pupil number documents for academic years 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023.
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First published.