Out of school funding

Out of school funding is to support holiday and wrap around care providers with children who have a SEND need identified within the EHCP, one plan or similar process, and whose parents need to access childcare to enable them to work or study.

Eligibility

A child is eligible for consideration of out of school inclusion funding if they meet the following criteria:

• one planning is in place at the school or setting that evidences medium or high need against the school banding descriptors OR the child has an EHCP with at least a band 4/D level
• the out of school setting the child is attending is situated in the administrative area of Essex County Council (ECC) and is Ofsted registered or school registered
• the out of school setting is able to submit a one plan or health care place/EHCP with the application form. It is acceptable to use the school's one plan
• the child requires funding to enhance adult to child ratio and/or purchase of resources that are specific to the child's needs

Application process

You must:

• explain the the child's parent(s)/carer(s) that the application will be read by a panel of ECC officers
• provide them with the following information relating to ECC's legal basis under the UK General Data Protection Regulations 2018 (GDPR):
  • ECCs lawful basis for processing the data as part of the funding application process are public task and legal obligation
  • the statutory duty is set out in the SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
• complete the out of school funding form for the whole academic year, noting the following:
  • fill in each section of the application form in full; incomplete forms will be returned and you may miss that month's meeting
  • the Resource Panel will not read additional supporting evidence if the form is not fully completed
  • ensure you have an EHCP, SEND Support Plan or One Plan and Heath Care Plan (if applicable) and submit with the application
  • a Heath Care Plan must be submitted if the child has a medical need
  • applications must be received by the 1st of the month to be included in the panel meeting held later the same month

Send the Out of school inclusion funding application form (Word, 125KB) and supporting documents as detailed above to: EY.resourcepanel@essex.gov.uk. The form can only be used to apply for funding for hours that will be attended from 1 September 2024 to 31 August 2025.

We use the O365 secure mail system to encrypt documents attached to your email. Ask for a secure link and we will send you an 'official-sensitive' email you can reply to.

After submission

We will check your application and ask you to make changes if needed.

If the child has an EHCP with a funding level of 4 or 5 (D or E):

• mid-rate funding will be awarded by panel
• payment will be made upon confirmation of hours attended

If the child has an EHCP with a funding level of 6+ (F and G):

• high-rate funding will be awarded by panel
• payment will be made upon confirmation of hours attended

If the child has no EHCP, the Early Years Resource Panel will read your application and supporting documents and discuss it at the next meeting.

The panel usually meet on the third Thursday of each month throughout the year. They will decide if your application meets the criteria for funding and the level of funding.

Where funding is agreed, we will ask for a Microsoft form each term to confirm whether there are any changes to ensure the correct hours are funded for. The link to the form will be emailed to providers at the start of term.

Note: The earliest payment date is for previously agreed funding and submissions made at the beginning of each term.

After the panel meeting

We will send you an email to tell you the outcome of your application. We aim to do this within 10 working days of the meeting.

If a monetary amount of funding is agreed, we will send you a funding agreement using the DocuSign system. You need to sign the agreement before the deadline, if you miss it, we might not be able to pay you.

If funding is not agreed, we will let you know the reasons why the application has not met the criteria for funding. If you don't agree with the decision you can send in more details and ask the panel to look at your application again at the next available meeting.

Useful resources

Download the one plan template - Word, 96KB noting the following:

• the template gives clear information about the evidence required to demonstrate the needs of the child, as well as the provision provided
• you do not have to transfer existing one plans or adopt the template, but you will need to ensure that submissions contain all the information detailed on the template and as highlighted in the SEND Code of Practice 0-25 (2015)

SENIF banding descriptors - Word, 72KB

Supporting pupils with medical conditions at school - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Complete the Out of school inclusion funding application form (Word, 125KB) for hours attended between 1 September 2024 and 31 August 2025.

More support

For enquiries email: EY.resourcepanel@essexgov.uk