Dacorum one of two councils accused of halving funding request for special school move

THE county council is to pick up a £2m “shortfall” after Dacorum was one of two councils in Hertfordshire which almost HALVED the contribution it had been requested to make towards the re-development of a special school.

Breakspeare School currently provides places for 97 children with severe learning difficulties from a site in Abbots Langley.

But county council officials plan to move the school to a redeveloped site in Croxley Green – where the number of places available would increase to 210.

In order to meet the costs of the £32m development the county council had asked the four closest district and borough council to contribute from funds collected from developers through the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).

But now it has emerged that two of those councils – Dacorum and Hertsmere borough councils – have agreed to pass on around HALF of the amounts the county council say was requested.

According to the county council, Dacorum had been asked to contribute £2.66m – but has agreed to hand over £1,364,424.

Meanwhile Hertsmere was asked for £1.47m – but has agreed to pay £769,058.

Three Rivers District Council and Watford Borough Council agreed to requests for contributions of £901,574 and £769,058 respectively.

According to Hertfordshire County Council the ‘proportionate’ requests for CIL funding from each council reflected the level of housing growth in each authority.

And executive member for education, libraries and lifelong learning Caroline Clapper has told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that she is “disappointed” by the decisions.

However both councils have defended the decisions taken – describing the amounts agreed as “proportionate”.

A spokesperson for Dacorum Borough Council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the council supported the plans to relocate Breakspeare School.

But they said concerns had been raised about the proportion of CIL funding that had been requested and that “a review of the methodology and calculation used by HCC in their proposal was undertaken”.

“Using the information supplied by HCC, the calculation was revised to include only housing completions that attracted a CIL liability,” said the council spokesperson.

“This resulted in a funding figure of £1,364,424, which we consider to be a fair and proportionate contribution from Dacorum to this essential school in the South-West Hertfordshire area”.

Leader of Hertsmere Borough Council Cllr Jeremy Newmark has also expressed “strong support” for the expansion of the school.

And he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service said it was “quite wrong” to say that Hertsmere had “reduced” its contribution.

He said the council’s contribution was “proportionate and generous, when compared to the amount of funding being contributed by other district and borough councils in South West Hertfordshire”.

And he added, “especially when the scheme will not guarantee a single place for Hertsmere students”.

“The quantum of our funding is aligned with the middle of three financial models submitted to us by Hertfordshire County Council,” he said.

“We must take into account all projects which will require or be the subject of bids for our limited Community Infrastructure Levy fund.

“Despite SEN provision being the duty and responsibility of Hertfordshire County Council, we are committed to playing a part in meeting the growing need.

“This investment will not be the only funding we allocate to SEN provision. We will not be putting all of our eggs into one basket.”

At the council meeting where Hertsmere took the funding decision, in July, it was reported to councillors that the county council had made CIL requests totalling £7.73m – but had assumed CIL funding of only £4.31m.

Reservations about the ‘robustness of the methodology used to determine the council’s share of the CIL funding’ were also highlighted – as were competing demands on the CIL fund from ‘other infrastructure providers’.

The county council’s executive member for education, libraries and lifelong learning Cllr Clapper says the “shortfall” will be met by the county council.

But she also warns that the reduced contributions will undermine the county council’s ability to deliver other projects.

“Relocating and enlarging Breakspeare School is a top priority in Hertfordshire County Council’s plan to address the critical need for additional school places for children and young people with the most severe and profound learning disabilities which is why we are funding over £20 million of the £31.7 million cost,” she said.

“We are disappointed that two of the councils in the area have decided to contribute only half what is needed from them from the funding pots they are collecting from housing developers with Hertsmere Borough Council putting forward £769,058 out of £1.47m requested and Dacorum £1.34m out of £2.66m.

“They each hold over £19 million in these pots which should be spent on necessary new infrastructure and services to support growth in our county.

“We are grateful that Three Rivers District Council and Watford Borough Council have agreed to make their contributions of £901,574 and £769,058 in full.

“Our bids were fair, proportionate and based on a robust methodology linked to the level of housing growth in each authority.

“In this case, the shortfall in funding will be made up by HCC to ensure these much-needed extra SEND school places can be created, but we are clear that reduced contributions from district and boroughs undermines our ability to deliver projects like new roads, schools and care homes for the benefit Hertfordshire’s growing communities in the long term.”

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a charge that can be levied by local authorities on new developments in their area.

And the funds can then be used to help deliver the infrastructure – such as schools, healthcare facilities, play areas or sports facilities – that may be needed to support development in the area.