Councils push for virtual schools review

A CCN report, based on the experiences of local authority staff and virtual school pupils, has found that virtual schools – pupil premium plus-funded teams embedded in councils to support the education of children in care – are a valuable asset to both schools and councils.

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It is urging the government to undertake a review of the operation of virtual schools across England, to inform a national plan for the future development of these systems.

This call follows the expansion of the role of virtual schools to include all young people with a social worker, rather than just catering to children in the care system.

The report found that while this expansion was welcomed by interviewees, many said it presents new challenges. One virtual school noted that it formerly had 12 staff members for 900 pupils, but now has responsibility for an additional 4,000 young people without any means to increase staffing.

Interviewees added that there must be appropriate resources allocated by both central and local government to match the new expectations, with one saying: “It’s a new burden - and it needs to be properly funded.”

A review of the operation of virtual schools should assess what they require to support increased numbers of children and look at how their remit could change following the expansion of responsibility, the CCN said.

The report also found that the size and scope of virtual schools varies across England, and calls for more consistency in the offer.

It makes a number of other recommendations, including:

• National and local policy makers should assess the role of virtual schools in supporting the SEND improvement plan.

• Government should allocate pupil premium plus funding for previously looked-after children in virtual schools.

• Local authority leaders should be familiarised with the operations of their virtual school.

Councillor Liz Brighouse, education spokesperson for the CCN, said: “The government has recognised the positive impact of virtual schools and has recently expanded their remit to include all young people with a social worker.

“However, we don’t want these valuable services to become a victim of their own success and this is why this report calls for a review into virtual schools to assess how they can be properly resourced to effectively champion this new cohort of young people, alongside their traditional role in supporting children in care.”