School Funding Shake-up To Support Students With Extra Needs

Wednesday, 19 October 2022 00:00

A funding formula is being introduced to get more money to Jersey schools with pupils who have additional needs.

The 'Jersey Funding Formula for Schools' will replace the 'Average Weighted Pupil Unit' formula, which doesn't reflect the needs of the children at the school.

The change in the way budgets are allocated to States-run schools has been developed following recommendations made in the Independent School Funding Review in 2020.

The formula will put more focus on the context of the needs of the school and the pupils who attend.

That means that schools should get more funding if they have a larger cohort of children with Special Educational Needs (SEN), a Record of Need (RoN) or those with lower attainment, or pupils who speak English as a second language, or who have speech and language problems.

Education Minister Deputy Inna Gardiner says this doesn't mean other schools will be worse off.

"When we calculate it, and we look how much schools would receive with the new formula vs. the old formula, all of them are better off.

And at the same time, schools with more children who need extra assistance in the classroom will get more funds to have more specialists to work with them.

This formula is designed to enable all children and young people to achieve their best, regardless of their background."

The minister also says that the extra money that schools will get will only go into their students' education, and not the upkeep of the building.

"I had meeting with all headteachers in the island's schools, and I ask them to submit the money they need for things as minor as some painting and as big as an extension and there is a separate pot of money for these projects, as well as the heating bills which will rise."

The government says it will continue to refine the formula over the next year to make sure it allocated funds effectively.

Full details of the Jersey Funding Formula can be found here.

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