SECONDARY school heads in Devon have said they are ’disheartened’ by a decision to cut funding by £33 per pupil to shore up the stretched special needs budget.

At its meeting in January, Devon County Council’s cabinet approved plans to move £2.22 million out of the schools budget and into ’high needs’, which pays for special educational needs provision.

Devon Association of Secondary Headteachers say the move will mean an average school losing out on £33 per pupil, or £33,000 per year for 2017/18 and beyond. The organisation says in most schools this can only be funded by the loss of a teacher.

The cabinet decision comes hot on the heels of a controversial new schools funding formula proposed by the Government, which would see many primaries and secondaries in the county losing money - although some would gain.

Devon County Council said education is facing a ’perfect storm’ of funding challenges, most of which are the result of central government decisions.

It stressed its decision, while it may involve money being taken away from school budgets, does mean it is remaining in education.

A council spokesman said 90 per cent of this money will find its way back to mainstream schools, where the majority of pupils with special needs are educated.

DASH said: ’Members are disheartened that Devon County Council cabinet has agreed a £33 per pupil cut in funding for the 2017-18 financial year and beyond. For an average size secondary of 1,000 pupils this amounts to £33,000, which in the current financial crisis can only be funded by the loss of a teacher in most schools.

’This news comes as two thirds of secondary schools in Devon have been told they will lose additional funding under the National Funding Formula, with many schools losing around £100,000.

’On top of this schools are faced with additional losses, because of increased employer costs for National Insurance and pensions. This situation has just been made worse by the recently imposed apprenticeship levy.

’Moving money out of schools to balance the already overspent high needs block is not a sensible solution.

’The solution is firstly in seeking increased central government funding to adequately fund core educational provision; and, secondly, a robust and long overdue county wide strategy for special educational needs to reduce money spent out of county and ensure financial efficiency.’

A Devon County Council spokesman said reforms to the special educational needs system had seen it extended to young people up to the age of 25, but no extra money had been made available to local authorities by central government. The high needs block of Devon’s dedicated schools grant was heading for a £4.4 million overspend this year, the spokesman added.

They said: ’Yes, we accept that we’ve had to take money out of schools’ own budgets, but that money has gone to support children with special educational needs. And we completely support schools when they say we need a fair system for funding.

’If we were getting the national average, £290 more per pupil, then a £33 movement from one pot to another would be less of a problem.

’In terms of what we’re doing about it, we’ve got the support of our local MPs, with Gary Streeter for example saying he will vote against the new formula, which is helpful. And we’ll continue getting into the ear of people like Justine Greening and Nick Gibb, to try and get fairer funding for Devon.’