Issue details

Proposed decision –To implement agreements between Kent County Council and mainstream schools for the delivery of Specialist Resource Provisions (SRPs) in Kent, to implement agreements between Kent County Council and providers for the delivery of Specialist Post-16 Institutions (SPIs) and to implement agreements between Kent County Council and Pupil Referral Units (PRUs). 

Reason for the decision

Current Service Level Agreements and contracts between Kent County Council and mainstream maintained and academy trusts related to the provision of Special Resource Provisions (SRPs) in Kent are due to end 31 August 2026.

The Council is required to have a legally binding agreement in place for the provision of these services that outlines the Council’s expectations in relation to the delivery of this provision. Given that the current agreements will end, with no scope to extend, a Key Decision is required to enter into new agreements.

Comparable legally binding agreements are required between the Council and organisations delivering Specialist Post-16 Institutions (SPIs) and Pupil Referral Units (PRUs). Historic agreements in relation to these provisions have expired and need to be updated to reflect current national legislation and local policy.

Given that children and young people are placed in all three provisions as part of statutory processes, and funding is allocated through national and local funding formulas the agreements will focus on a quality standards and service expectations.

Background

Following a comprehensive review of SRPs in Kent, a Key Decision was taken to implement legally binding agreements between the Council and mainstream schools for the provision of SRP’s in Kent Decision - 23/00128 - Specialist Resource Provision Contracts & Service Level Agreements (SLAs). Contracts between the Council and academy trusts and Service Level Agreements between the Council and maintained schools where subsequently implemented. These agreements end 31 August 2026 with no scope to extend.

SRPs are a key provision in ensuring that the Council can meet its statutory duty for education provision for children and young people with an Education and Health Care Plan (EHCP) and form part of a continuum of Special Education Needs (SEN) provision that includes mainstream, specialist in mainstream and special school provision. They are expected to form a cornerstone of the Government’s SEN reforms, expected this year. SPI’s form part of the continuum of need for post-16 students.

A recent Key Decision agreed the expansion of SRPs in Kent to meet evidenced gaps. Decision - 25/00085 - Specialist Resource Provision Review and Commissioning Intentions. This included the agreement to commission new SRPs and / or expand existing SRPs to meet provision pathway and geographic gaps and the growth in demand.

Given that SRPs are delivered as additional provision within mainstream settings in exchange for additional high needs funding from within the Designated Schools Grant, legally binding agreements are required to be in place.

The agreements will not specify the number of commissioned places in SRPs as this is addressed in the Commissioning Plan for Education Provision in Kent, also subject to a separate Key Decision. It will not include  funding arrangements, or specify a financial value, as funding allocated is subject to statutory processes. Rather, the focus of the agreements is to outline expectations regarding both the delivery and monitoring of the provision delivered.

Feedback from headteachers and SRP leads has been that the current agreements are too long, overly complex and lacking in detail in specific areas. Engagement has led to a revision of the existing agreements with a focus on creating a single agreement regardless of the status of the school delivering, streamlining the agreement to remove extraneous content, clarifying areas and adding detail where needed. A current draft has been shared with schools delivering SRPs for comment.

Specialist Post-16 Institutions (SPIs) provide educational provision for young people with an EHCP who are age 16 and above, for whom mainstream support is not sufficient to meet need, but who do not require a special school. SPIs are delivered by independent organisations, rather than school. Placements are identified through the EHCP process and are made possible by Section 41 of the Children and Families Act. SPIs must be registered through  OFSTED registration for the EFSA funding.

Pupil Referral Units provide education to children and young people who are at risk of or have been permanently excluded or who are unable to attend their usual school due to health issues (Rosewood School). Placements at PRUs enable the Council to meet statutory duties and are agreed through local discussions between schools and PRU headteachers.

All three provisions support the Council’s statutory duty to provide education for children and young people whose needs cannot be met solely within a mainstream provision. Placements are made as a result of needs assessments and statutory processes. Funding is allocated through national and local formulas. Consequently, for all three provisions revised legally binding agreements will focus on ensuring delivery of the outcomes expected and providing best value.

Options (other options considered but discarded)

Options considered and discarded:

1)    Extend existing agreements (SRPs only). This option was discarded as there are no extension clauses within the current agreements to allow for this.

2)    Reinstate expired agreements (SPIs and PRUs only). This option was discarded because former agreements are outdated and no longer fit for purpose.

3)    Not implementing an agreement (all). This option was discarded because of the need to document the terms in a written agreement

How the proposed decision supports the Council’s Strategic Statement

This decision supports Reforming Kent 2025 – 2028 Aim 3: Supporting Residents that Need Help, specifically in relation to Objective 6: Improve processes and outcomes for our SEND services while tackling the unsustainable growth in demand, priority: Expand Specialist Resource Units. 

Financial Implications

The Council meets the cost of SRPs, SPI’s and PRUs through paying a pre-agreed rate per place, agreed by the Council in accordance with the prevailing Department for Education High Needs Funding Guidance. The 2025-26 forecast revenue cost for SRPs is £25m, £16m for SPIs and £9m for PRUs. This is just the amount paying directly for PRU places and does not include the devolved money going to secondary schools, which may be used to be pay for additional PRU places by the school.

Funding for SRPs, SPIs and PRUs come from the High Needs Block of the Dedicated Schools Grant, a specific ring-fenced revenue grant from the Department for Education.

The Kent Commissioning Plan for Education (KCP) 2026-30 outlines how the Council will meet its statutory duty to ensure sufficient school places are available. The KCP is a five-year rolling plan which is updated and subject to a Key Decision annually.

The plan sets out how the Council will ensure there are sufficient high quality places, the right locations for all learners and provides an overarching framework for determining when and where education may be needed in the future. This includes the commissioning of SRPs across the county. Decision - 25/00099 - Commissioning Plan for Education Provision in Kent 2026-30

Consequently, the financial implications related to the provision of SRPs have been identified and agreed as part of Decision 25/00099 and this decision relates solely to securing best value through the implementation of an agreement between the Council and mainstream schools delivering this provision ensuring effectiveness.

Legal Implications  

• Kent County Council (KCC) has a statutory responsibility under Section 13 of the Education Act 1996 to provide suitable education for all children and young people until age 19 and for those with Education and Health Care (EHC) Plans to 25.
• Similarly, under Section 19 of the same Act, KCC has a duty to arrange suitable education for children of compulsory schools age who may not receive it due to illness or exclusion.
• Under Children and Families Act 2014 KCC has a duty ‘to support the child and his or her parent, or the young person, in order to facilitate the development of the child or young person and to help him or her achieve the best possible educational and other outcomes’.
• Under section 27 of the Children and Families Act 2014 (“the 2014 Act”), KCC is under a duty to keep under review the educational provision, training provision and social care provision made in its area (and outside it) for children and young people who have special educational needs or a disability. KCC must consider the extent to which its provision is sufficient to meet the educational needs, training needs and social care needs of the children and young people concerned.
• The SEND Code of Practice (2015) places requirements on Local Authorities to provide access to advice from a suitably qualified person as part of the EHCP process and make appropriate provision for those with an EHC plan in the 0-25 range.
• DfE Arranging Alternative Provision Guidance (2025)
• Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper (2025).
• Schools White Paper (2026): pending

All individual proposals to either establish new, expand current or cease current provision will be required to go through the statutory process under the School Organisation (Prescribed Alterations to Maintained Schols) (England) Regulations 2013, Making Significant Changes to Maintained Schools (statutory guidance August 2025) and Making Significant Changes to an Academy (non-statutory guidance on collaborative school place planning, August 2025).