In March 2022, we announced that we would be working with councils to secure effective and sustainable management of local high needs systems - including through a new delivering better value (DBV) programme, backed by £85 million over 3 years, which will provide dedicated support and funding to 55 local authorities facing significant challenges to reform their high needs systems, with the aim of improving delivery of SEND services for children and young people while securing the sustainability of local services. The first phase of the DBV programme is to be delivered through a contract.
We are now delighted to announce that Newton Europe, in collaboration with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA), will deliver this contract from 2022-23.Newton works as a transformation and improvement partner to local authorities and CIPFA is the local government accounting standard setter in the UK. Between them, they have worked with hundreds of public sector organisations, particularly local authorities, have a comprehensive understanding of children’s services and the SEND agenda, and have set out an approach that is:
- Outcomes-focussed. Both organisations have worked extensively alongside local authorities to transform how services are delivered. Their focus is always on improving resident outcomes and ways of working, and consequently sustainably improving financial performance.
- Evidence-based, data-driven and delivery-focussed. Newton and CIPFA take a partnership approach to working with local authorities to create robust plans which will have a measurable and sustainable difference, and as delivery partners understand the challenges associated with implementing change.
- Rooted in co-production: The organisations believe any programme of work needs to be co-produced, bespoke, and based on detailed evidence of each local area – balancing visibility and assurance with local autonomy to genuinely add value to existing work.
They will bring experience of working with local authorities to improve social care, alongside project management, change management, and analytical financial modelling capacity. With SEND financial and practice advisers, they will support local authorities to engage with key stakeholders and conduct a comprehensive diagnostic process to identify the opportunities to reform their high needs system. Alongside SEND advisors, they will also support local systems to create a local delivery plan to realise these opportunities to improve. The Department will then work with local authorities to determine which identified reforms to fund and will provide grants directly to local authorities to implement and embed these reforms. This will be key to ensuring these local authorities are better placed to respond to the forthcoming SEND Review reforms.