Powys council pushes for £3.5m extra ALN funding
Powys County Council votes overwhelmingly for an additional £3.5 million to support children with additional learning needs, amid heated political debate.
Powys County Council has formally demanded an extra £3.5 million for children with additional learning needs (ALN) for the coming financial year.
The motion, tabled by Labour councillors at the council meeting on Thursday 8 October, seeks the council’s share of the £322 million Barnett consequential payment that the Welsh Government receives from the UK Government for England’s Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) funding.
Councillor Huw Williams, representing Abercraf and Ystradgynlais, explained the scale of the need.
“In Powys almost 2000 children currently require ALN support with numbers increasing year on year.”
The request follows a summer‑long political row in which Labour Senedd members, alongside Reform UK and the Conservatives, blocked the Plaid Cymru‑led Welsh Government’s supplementary budget, arguing that the £40 million offered for ALN fell short of the £100 million they had sought.
Williams and Brecon West councillor David Meredith, who seconded the motion, argue that the additional funding is essential to meet the rising demand for specialist teaching and support services across the county.
Only one councillor opposed the motion, while two abstained, and the motion was carried by 49 votes to one.
Plaid Cymru councillor Bryn Davies, representing Banwy, Llanfihangel and Llanwddyn, voiced strong criticism of the motion’s premise.
“I express sympathy with Cllrs William and Meredith in bringing this motion before us.” They have their strings pulled by their masters in London just as their colleagues on every other council in Wales.
British Labour members in the Senedd had the chance to vote for £120 million over a period of three years directly for ALN in Wales. They could have abstained from voting to secure faster improvements but they chose to keep the poor people of Wales in their place.
“It is not the role of London politicians to tell the Welsh Government how to spend money.” Everyone knows the Barnett formula is unfair to Wales and Labour and Conservative parties have had 50 years to adapt it.
Davies also suggested that councillors should press for a reform of the Barnett formula and seek additional funds from the HS2 railway scheme, noting that the previous Labour‑led Welsh Government allocated only £9 million for ALN.
“This motion is complete hypocrisy,” he added.
Liberal Democrat council leader Jake Berriman, who represents Llandrindod North, declined to enter the partisan debate but affirmed his support for the funding request.
“I don’t want to step into the ring with the exchanges coming across the chamber.” I do support the request for additional ALN funding.
Angela Davies, Liberal Democrat councillor for Rhayader, expressed disappointment at the politicisation of the issue.
The council’s decision adds pressure on the Welsh Government to allocate the requested sum before the start of the next academic year, a period when schools and specialist providers must finalise staffing and resource plans.
Welsh Government officials have not yet commented on the council’s motion, but the Barnett consequential payment is expected to be distributed to the Welsh Government in the coming weeks, with the allocation to each local authority to be confirmed thereafter.
Should the additional £3.5 million be secured, Powys would be better placed to expand specialist teaching posts, provide targeted interventions and reduce waiting lists for ALN assessments, a priority highlighted by local education providers and families alike.