Deficit puts councils on cliff edge

摘要

Many councils could be pushed over the 'financial cliff edge' if the £500m of high-needs deficit faced by the sector is not written off, the Government has been warned. High-needs deficits have been pushing some local authorities perilously close to the limits of financial sustainability for months, with 32 councils asked last year to submit a plan for how they would recover their special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) deficits within three years. New guidance issued by the Department for Education (DfE) and Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) earlier this year had been expected to ease the problem. But council chiefs fear it will fail to prevent accounts being qualified, with one sector source saying: 'You can't just wish away local authority accounting practice.'