Experts At Hand Funding (National SEND Reform Programme)
August 25, 2026 Cabinet Member - Education & Skills (Cabinet member) Key decision Approved View on council websiteThis summary is generated by AI from the council’s published record and supporting documents. Check the full council record and source link before relying on it.
Summary
The Cabinet Member - Education & Skills approved recommendations for the Experts At Hand Funding (National SEND Reform Programme) on 25/08/2026. This decision delegates authority to the Director of Education to recruit staff for the Experts at Hand team and transfer £1.45m to the Integrated Care Board to fund Speech and Language and Occupational Therapists.
The Executive Director of Adult Social Care, Wellbeing and Communities awarded a contract for Adult Social Care Improvement to Newton Consulting Limited on 19/08/2025. This decision follows a mini-competition process and will fund consultancy support for the council's improvement programme.
The Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director of Corporate Resources awarded a contract for actuarial services to the Gloucestershire Pension Fund to Hymans Robertson LLP on 02/12/2025. This contract will commence on 1 April 2026 and is for an initial period of four years.
The Executive Director of Economy, Environment and Infrastructure decided to exercise a three-year extension option on the Council's contract with West Mercia Energy for the supply of renewable electricity and gas on 11/05/2026. This extension commences on 30th September 2026.
Full council record
Purpose
This report sets out the Department for Education’s (DfE) objectives for the SEND Experts at Hand policy reform; how Gloucestershire plans to meet these objectives; and seeks approval for how we plan to deploy the Experts at Hand grant funding provided by the Department of Education for the three financial years (2026/27 to 2028/29). Grant funding for the financial year 2026/27 has been confirmed as £4.6m.
Decision
That the Cabinet Member for Education and Skills rejects the alternative options and take the recommended decision to:
Delegate authority to the Director of Education in consultation with the Cabinet Member For Education And Skills to:
- Commence the recruitment and appointment of new members of Gloucestershire County Council staff who will be the Experts at Hand and transformation team for 2026/27 in line with the council’s Local Area SEND Reform plan submitted to the DfE and the permitted use of funding, set out in the DfE guidance (see background documents)
- 2. Transfer of up to £1.45m of revenue grant funding from the council to the Integrated Care Board (ICB) under the terms of a Section 75 agreement between the council and ICB to fund the recruitment and employment of Speech and Language and Occupational Therapists in 2026/27, which will form part of the Experts at Hand team.
For the reasons set out in the report.
Supporting Documents
Details
| Reference | Call-ins0 |
| Outcome | Recommendations Approved |
| Decision date | 25 Aug 2026 |
| Effective from | 2 Sep 2026 |
| Subject to call-in | Yes |