Schools Portal Accounts

Schools should now be using the online Schools Portal for Admissions. To comply with data governance requirements, the council operates a process of disabling user accounts on the system after a 90 day period in which the account has not been used.  When users have their account disabled they will need to request a reinstatement of their account which can take some time to activate.

Please ensure that Portal users in your school, who need to use the system, log in to their accounts before close of business on Thursday 6th May as we will be undertaking our regular process to disable accounts on Friday 7th May. 

Birmingham Mainstream School Top-up Guidance

Following ongoing concerns from users relating to the suitability of using CRISP for mainstream school top-up funding, a review of the resource allocation system in Birmingham has taken place.  We are now able to issue part one of the new guidance to support requesting top-up funding from the local authority.  This guidance relates to children and young people attending Birmingham mainstream schools. 

Top-up funding is available for children and young people with complex Special Educational Needs, via either a EHCP or SSPP, where the provision outlined in the plan exceeds the nationally agreed contribution from the SEN notional budget and requires resources that are not typically available through the Local Offer. 

In place of CRISP, funding will be issued via units of support required to deliver the provision outlined in section F of EHCPs or within the provision section in SSPPs.  Within the guidance document are examples of appropriate provision to meet needs across the areas of Cognition and Learning, Communication and Interaction (ASC and SLCN) and Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties. 

Further guidance is expected this term relating to top-up funding available to Early Years’ and Post-16 settings as well as sensory and physical needs.

Schools will be asked to provide feedback on this guidance document over the next 12 months following initial implementation period in order to review the appropriateness of the new model.

This new system will be implemented immediately for new plans.  Funding accompanying current plans will be reviewed in line with the planned Annual Review.  Until then current funding will be maintained. All top-up funding will be monitored termly by the appropriate link advisor to ensure impact.

Further support can also be sought via your Locality Team representative from the SEN Support Services.

Training sessions will be made available shortly to support schools in understanding the new processes for requesting top-up funding.

Surplus primary places: Webinars on Thursday 13th May

Officers from Education Infrastructure provided an update on sufficiency at Primary Forum in March 2021 and shared an update regarding primary places as a result of changes to in-year growth and reduced intakes.

We have committed to providing information to support schools, trusts and admission authorities to plan and have arranged online webinars for next week.

• Thursday 13th May 10am–11am – Book using this Eventbrite link
• Thursday 13th May 11.30am–12.30am – Book using this Eventbrite link

The slides and recording from the webinars as well as the relevant data will be shared with all schools after the webinars.

If schools have any queries ahead of the webinars, please contact edsi.enquiries@birmingham.gov.uk