A council that was recently told its provision for learners with additional learning needs (ALN) forms a large portion of its education deficit has welcomed its share of a £60 million settlement from the Welsh Government.

Leader of Monmouthshire County Council, Cllr Mary Ann Brocklesby, said her Welsh Labour colleagues in the Senedd were to thank for the commitment having finally agreed on a deal with Plaid Cymru to pass the Supplementary Budget, which had previously been voted down.

The county will now be given £1.4 million to spend on ALN and, according to Cllr Brocklesby, £1.1 million of that will go straight into schools. However, she admitted there is still a long way to go to plug the county’s black hole in education.

“It is very welcome news, but it is a start, not a solution. Our schools still face real pressures, and we’ll keep fighting so that every child in Monmouthshire can thrive.”

Schools across the county are collectively on course to spend £9.3 million more than they have been funded for, and some have been told some posts are unaffordable. All 34 of the schools in Monmouthshire are currently on course to finish the financial year in a deficit, and it is expected to rise by £2.4 million.

The £60 million figure is 50 per cent more than the Plaid Cymru Welsh Government was initially prepared to offer in its Supplementary Budget, having previously failed to declare any additional money earlier in the year.

£56 million will be split between schools and councils, while another £1.5 million will be allocated to a ‘long-term sustainability plan’ and £2.5 million for the further sustainability sector.

Welsh Labour Leader, Ken Skates MS, has welcomed the move, saying “It is a welcome first step in dealing with the need to better fund schools.”

“We will continue to call for more money later this year if another supplementary budget is laid before the Senedd. Welsh Labour will continue to fight for more funding for ALN and to negotiate for the best possible deal ahead of next year’s budget.”

But, while Labour hails its intervention as a success, Monmouthshire Council’s share of the funding, which will be distributed across the whole of Wales, represents a relatively small portion of the finances schools will have to find in order to balance the books.

The headteacher of Abergavenny’s largest school, Jonathan Watson, told the council that a staff restructure including redundancies would still be crucial to wiping its own £2.2 million deficit. At the September meeting, opposition councillors also forced through a motion requiring the Labour and Green-run council to state how it will reduce the deficit without changing the staffing levels at schools. The Cabinet has already stated is “hard.”

The supplementary budget went before Senedd this week and is scheduled for a full debate in November. Both Plaid Cymru and Labour say the cross-party compromise also preserves funding for the NHS, childcare, and free school meals.