Alternative Provision

Alternative Provision within West Sussex

West Sussex County Council (WSCC), along with other local authorities, has a statutory requirement to:

Arrange suitable full-time education for permanently excluded pupils, and for other pupils who – because of illness or other reasons – would not receive suitable education without such provision. This applies to all children of compulsory school age resident in the Local Authority area, whether or not they are on the roll of a school, and whatever type of school they attend.

(Alternative Provision Statutory guidance for local authorities January 2013 - known as "the Guidance”)

Alternative Provision is defined in “the Guidance” as,

Education arranged by local authorities for pupils who, because of exclusion, illness or other reasons, would not otherwise receive suitable education; education arranged by schools for pupils on a fixed period exclusion; and pupils being directed by schools to off-site provision to improve their behaviour.

The DPS

In September 2021, WSCC commissioned a dynamic purchasing system (DPS), supporting commissioners, schools and colleges to secure alternative provision for children and young people between 0 to 25 years of age.

Provision within the DPS is divided into five categories:

• Early Intervention and prevention
• Vocational opportunities (including post 16 provision)
• Interim face to face tutoring for learners waiting an education placement or who have been excluded
• Online tutoring (also known as blended package)
• Complex learners

The following Provider Guide contains a list of approved providers by West Sussex on the DPS list under each category (Independent Alternative Provision DPS) and explains how West Sussex County Council Buys (Commissions) SEND Services for Children and Young People.

What if a provider is not in this list?

In your search of alternative provision / alternative providers on the Local Offer, you may discover providers who are not on this list.
If you would like the Local Authority to consider any of these for your child or young person, please first check with the provider and ask them to consider applying to the LA’s DPS list.

The contracts and commissioning team are always keen to hear from new and established providers that may be able to provide suitable services. They can send an email to [email protected] should they wish to express an interest, make an application to join or just discuss first. If the provider you are interested in does not want to be part of this approved list, the school or LA may refuse to commission (‘fund’) their support for your child, so do try and discuss this with the provider first if you are not sure.

There is more information about Alternative Provision on the Tools for Schools website especially about APC/statutory provision, school-commissioned provision and how it can be accessed.