Welsh Labour Senedd Members secure better Additional Learning Needs funding package from Plaid Cymru Welsh Government in Supplementary Budget deal.

The deal follows after the Plaid Cymru Welsh Government spectacularly lost its first Supplementary Budget vote in July, after failing to agree a deal with any opposition Party.

The main sticking point in the negotiations concerned the lack of funding proposed to support Additional Learning Needs education provision in Wales, which continues to be a significant area of pressure for Councils across the country.

After initially not inteind to allocate a single penny to ALN services, today’s agreement sees the Welsh Government agreeing to allocate £60m – a 50% increase on the funding already secured by Welsh Labour – and this will provide learners, families, schools and Councils with a short-term cash injection to help respond to some of the immediate pressures.

Crucially, this will mean that RCT schools will now receive a vital boost of around £4m.

Speaking after the agreement was announced, RCT Labour’s Council Leader, Councillor Ann Crimmings, said:

“Securing £60m for pupils with ALN across Wales and, in particular here in RCT, this year was greatly needed.

“While this announcement is welcomed, we know that it will not fix the pressures that our schools face next year, but it will help to ease some of the most immediate concerns.

“Alongside other Council Leaders across Wales, I have been clear that ALN services are in urgent need of funding support, and I am grateful to Welsh Labour MS’s and WLGA spokespersons for securing this extra money for our most vulnerable learners.

“I know that our Welsh Labour Senedd colleagues will continue to fight for more money for ALN services and I will certainly be offering my support in ensuring that these calls are heard by the Plaid Cymru Welsh Government.”