Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance he has issued to schools on the role of special educational needs coordinators in decisions on spending the pupil premium.

The Department for Education has not issued guidance to schools on the role of the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) in decisions on how to spend the Pupil Premium. We expect that schools will want to involve the SENCO in determining how to use the Pupil Premium to fund support for those pupils with special educational needs who are economically deprived, looked after by the local authority or who have left care via adoption or other routes.

It should also be noted that the draft 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice states that the SENCO, headteacher and governing body or proprietor should consider their strategic approach to meeting special educational needs in the context of the total resources available to the school, including any resources targeted at particular groups, such as the Pupil Premium. The draft SEND Code of Practice was laid before Parliament on 11 June 2014 and must be approved by Parliament before it comes into force on 1 September 2014.