The Early Years SEND Inclusion Funding (SENIF) provides support for settings to enable them to provide opportunities that are additional to and different from every day and universal and targeted practice. Children must be accessing free entitlement hours to be able to claim. SENIF.
SENIF should be used alongside Early Years Pupil Premium and Disability Access funding for eligible 3 and 4 year olds which can be applied for through the Early Years Provider Portal as well as the reasonable adjustments made by settings as required by the Equalities Act 2010.
SENIF is available to support children who meet the criteria and access the Early Years Entitlement Funding as follows:
- 2 year old funding available for some children if eligible, for up to 15 hours per week
- 3 and 4 year old funding for all children for up to 15 hours per week
- 3 and 4 year olds children accessing up to 30 hours per week
If a 2 year old child needing additional SEN support is not in receipt of Early Years Entitlement Funding, please contact your area Early Years Team Manager to discuss further.
It is essential to monitor children’s progress (EYFS Statutory Framework September 2021 and the DfE Code of Practice 2014) and providers should use the graduated approach to meet a child’s needs. Further support can be found on Cumbria's SEND Local Offer, Early Years SENCO Toolkit [PDF 5.3MB] and Cumbria County Council's - Early Years website.
The application process for SENIF
The application form is a WORD document to be saved and shared with parents and Cumbria County Council. Applications must be sent via either secure email (Egress) to LIS.EarlyYearsBusinessSupport@cumbria.gov.uk or through the Early Years SEND link on the schools portal which will reduce the need for any printed hard copies.
In order to provide a clear outline of the child’s needs and progress you must include the following in your request:
- A fully completed Cumbria SENIF Application Form 22-23 [WORD 74.8KB]
- A fully completed Early Help Assessment Form [WORD 46.5KB]
- A completed Summary of Progress and Assessment [WORD 37.4KB]
- Appendix 1 (parental consent) [WORD 131 KB]
- A current SEN Support Plan [WORD 466KB] or IEP (and a reviewed plan if available)
- Provision Map [WORD 33.1KB] It is important to show what additional support you have already provided and to identify how you plan to use the SENIF
- Any reports from other professionals (if available)
- Health Care Plan (if available)
There are 3 levels of funding that may be awarded for one academic year as follows:
- Level 1 - £1,000 per year
- Level 2 - £1,500 per year
- Level 3 - £2,000 per year
Applications will be considered by a panel which will include representatives from the Early Years Team, Educational Psychology and Health. The level of funding awarded will be based on the information provided in the application and the level of need of the child.
The funding will be paid on a termly basis for 1 year.
The funding levels are for a child accessing 15 hours per week (570 hours/years). For a child accessing up to 30 hours per week the funding will be at pro-rata rate dependent on hours attended. Likewise, a part time child not using their full entitlement would receive a pro-rata amount.
The amounts paid per term will vary dependent upon the number of weeks in a term and the hours accessed by the child hours claimed on the ‘Actual’ task each term. Funding may be backdated to the start of the term when the application was approved by panel if the child is eligible and it is evident that additional support has already been provided and paid for.
SENIF funding will cease if an Educational Health Care Plan is issued.
If a child attends more than 1 setting each setting must apply separately. If a child moves setting the funding will cease and the new setting will need to re-apply.
Applications for funding must be received by the dates below:
- 30th November 2022 for funding to commence September or January (depending on age of child)
- 10th February 2023 for funding to commence January or April (depending on age of child)
- 31st May 2023 for funding to commence April or September (depending on age of child)
(Please note, applications received after the deadlines above will not be considered until the following panel.)
All applications will be considered by the Early Years SENIF Panel. These will take place within 2 weeks of the submission deadline. Providers will be notified of the outcome of the panel decisions by:
- 15th December 2022
- 28th February 2023
- 1st July 2023
Criteria for SENIF funding does not require involvement from an Area SENCO or EYSAT. However, if you wish to request an AREA SENCO/EYSAT please ensure you include LA Specialist Support Request Appendix 2 [WORD 35.9KB]
As part of the application process the panel when considering individual applications may recommend as a condition of funding that the provider receives support from an Area SENCO.
It is acknowledged that there may be an occasional exceptional circumstance when some of the above documentation may not be available for example, a child with complex needs due to start a setting. In this instance, please contact your area Early Years Team Manager to discuss further the process to follow.
Review
Each setting should evaluate the funding at the end of each term by updating the provision map and the progress and assessment document showing how the funding has been used and the impact. There is no requirement to submit this paperwork every term to the local authority, but it may be requested as part of an audit process.
A review of SENIF will take place in the summer term and you will be asked to provide information on the use and impact of the SENIF as part of this review.
If during the year the Manager/setting SENCO thinks a level of support for a child is no longer adequate for his/her need or if the child’s attendance hours have changed, the provider needs to contact LIS.EarlyYearsBusinessSupport@cumbria.gov.uk
If a child in receipt of funding moves to another setting you must inform business support on LIS.EarlyYearsBusinessSupport@cumbria.gov.uk