Introduction
Further education includes any study after secondary education that’s not part of higher education (that is, not taken as part of a university undergraduate or graduate degree).
Courses range from basic English and maths to Higher National Diplomas (HNDs). It also includes technical level qualifications and applied general qualifications, which replace diplomas and vocational qualifications.
SEND information - part of our Local Offer
Funding
Further Education Colleges get an annual budget which can be used to pay for additional support for young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN).
Individual colleges decide how best to meet a young person’s needs and will carry out an assessment as part of the college application process.
The college must fund the first £6,000 of the cost of this support from their budget. If the cost is going to be more than £6,000, the local authority may top up with additional money.
The local authority will decide if this additional funding is appropriate using the information in the individual’s Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan.
You can find more information about further education courses and funding on the GOV.UK website.
View the graduated response and provision that is ordinarily available in Somerset schools that the local authority expects to be available for Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities.