SEN school warns of closure risk amid fee row

A school for children with special educational needs (SEN) has said it faces "a very real possibility of closure" due to a lack of funding.

Northease Manor in Lewes, East Sussex, said local authorities had "absolutely refused" to agree to a "realistic" increase in its fees.

One county council said the school's fee increase was "unsustainable".

The school's chair of governors, Julie Toben, said the news had been delivered to parents and was causing "huge anxiety".

Northease Manor School is a co-educational, independent school for primarily autistic students or those with dyslexia.

It accepts students from the age of 10, whose families either self-fund or receive local authority help.

Ms Toben said after "many weeks" of negotiations, East Sussex, West Sussex and Brighton councils were "absolutely refusing" to meet their needs.

She said the school needed to charge a fee of £32,000, but had been offered a maximum 5% increase on its current fee, taking it to about £27,000.

"We would not even be able to break even on that," she said.

"Every year we are pushed back," she said, adding: "The last few years we have cut staff, not given salary increases, reduced all the support costs we possibly can."

An East Sussex County Council spokesperson said: "Northease Manor School have informed us of a 30% increase in their fees from September 2023.

"This is unsustainable and disproportionate for the local authority to manage within existing budgets.

"We have been working with colleagues in West Sussex County Council and Brighton and Hove City Council to agree a more sustainable model but unfortunately this has not been agreed by the school."

West Sussex County Council said it had a commitment to ensure children with special educational needs received the best education possible.

But it said it also had a duty to ensure it was making best use of its resources "which is more important than ever given the financial pressure schools and local authorities are facing".

'Huge budget pressures'

It said it was "committed to continuing discussions with Northease School to resolve this issue as quickly as possible".

Councillor Jacob Taylor, chair of the children, families and schools committee at Brighton & Hove City Council, said the local authorty is working with the school and other partners to try and find a "workable solution".

He said: “We face huge budget pressures on our services, but we’re committed to ensuring the education and needs of all children are met."