Welsh Government under fire over over ALN funding

Alec Doyle – Local democracy reporter

The Welsh Government should be ‘ashamed’ for funnelling hundreds of millions of pounds away from children with additional learning needs (ALN), according to Welsh Labour’s interim leader Ken Skates.

The criticism comes politicians from across the spectrum have slammed the decision by the new Welsh Government not to distribute £340 million given by UK Government to Wales’ 22 local authorities to support ALN investment in schools.

The money was supposed to give Wales parity with England, where the UK Government has written off ALN debts racked up by local councils.

But due to councils not treating ALN spending as a separate budget line the Senedd has decided not to distribute the funds.

All 22 Welsh local authorities – through the Welsh Local Government Association  – sent a letter to the new Senedd following the May election urging it to honour the agreement to pass that funding on to councils to improve ALN provision across the country.

Last week Senedd Finance Minister Elin Jones MS revealed in her supplementary budget that the £340 million allocated by Westminster is not strictly ringfenced for ALN provision due to the way Welsh authorities budget around ALN services – as a result it intends to direct the money into a general pot for other priorities.

That figure includes £12 million pledged to Wrexham County Borough Council.

“I was expecting the money to come absolutely – I still think it should have been allocated to local authorities,” said Wrexham Council leader Mark Pritchard.

“I believe it was the wrong decision by the Welsh Government but they’re entitled to make that decision.

“But the financial pressure of ALN is not going to go away, it’s going to increase. The pressure will continue to build, the bill will continue to rise and the Welsh Government at some stage will have to intervene or allocate more money to additional learning needs.

“I was disappointed because I did feel that there was a big opportunity from a new government coming in that they would allocate money to education. In the past they’ve always said that education is a priority for them.

“Let’s hope that in the future they look at it again and they put more money in.

“I have never known the WLGA to be so united. We had a vote on it, and everyone supported that the money had to come to the individual councils.

“We sent that to the First Minister and were convinced the money was coming – but they ignored that request.

“If the financial pressure keeps on increasing and there’s no additional money, it will have to come from our allocation and it’s taken from other areas – non-statutory services.

“It’s difficult but every authority across Wales is in the same position.

“We should cater for these children and look after them the best we can. The money should be there though and it isn’t.”

Challenged

Fflint Wrecsam MS Sam Rowlands – the Welsh Conservatives spokesperson for Finance, Education and Families – challenged Ms Jones’ announcement in the Senedd.

“I think there’s a misunderstanding of where the debt sits around ALN funding,” he said. “Most of those debts won’t show as an ALN debt on a budget ledger, but are often the reason why so many schools in Wales now are running deficit budgets.

“Schools in Wales have tens of millions of pounds in deficit budgets. That is a very real debt and ALN is a significant proportion of that.

“Our local authorities need to be supported. In Wrexham, for example, we have heard the council needs its anticipated £12 million share of the ALN funds to avoid severe local budget cuts and job losses.

“It is a travesty to see money given to the Welsh Government to support ALN won’t be spent on supporting ALN pupils in Wales.”

Mr Skates called on the minority Plaid Cymru Government to reconsider it’s proposal before the supplementary budget goes to a Senedd vote on July 14.

“More than 3,500 pupils in Flintshire and Wrexham have additional learning needs. Every single council and teaching union in Wales has called on the Plaid Government to ensure that this money goes to schools.

“Every pupil deserves the best possible support and care to reach their full potential and be happy at school. School staff, parents and carers work incredibly hard for young people with additional learning needs, often under extraordinary pressure.

“It’s astounding that the Welsh Government are not giving any extra support to these children. Our ALN system is under extreme pressure. The Welsh Government has been given £340m for the express purpose of relieving some of this pressure, and they’ve chosen not to pass it on to those who need it. They should be ashamed.”

The most recent figures show there are 2,268 ALN pupils in Flintshire and 1,329 in Wrexham.

“Schools and families deserve transparency,” said Mr Skates. “The Plaid Cymru Welsh Government needs to either do the right thing or be honest about where they’re diverting this money to.”

Pressures

Wrexham County Borough Council’s Labour Group also issued a statement.

“This comes when schools across Wrexham are facing mounting financial pressures,” it said, “The ever-increasing costs of meeting statutory ALN responsibilities are driving school balances into increasingly concerning deficits, placing headteachers and governors under immense strain as they work to deliver the support that children and young people are legally entitled to receive.

“Labour councillors stand shoulder-to-shoulder with those calling for these millions of pounds to be allocated directly to Wrexham to help address the growing financial pressures facing our schools.

“Our schools should not be expected to absorb ever-growing ALN costs at the expense of teaching, staffing and wider educational provision. We urge the Welsh Government to reconsider its decision and ensure this funding reaches the classrooms and learners it was intended to support. Wrexham’s children, families and schools deserve nothing less.”

Wrexham MP Andrew Ranger added: “I’m extremely disappointed. I know from my own meetings with Wrexham Council that difficult decisions may now have to be made without the funding which is understandably needed.”