Definition
Additionally Resourced Provision is local authority-commissioned places within a mainstream school for pupils with EHCPs and specific types of SEND. Funded above the standard SEN notional budget, ARPs typically operate as enhanced classroom-based provision rather than a fully separate unit.
In context for parents
Key checkpoints
- ARPs are LA-commissioned places within a mainstream school for pupils with EHCPs and specific types of SEND.
- Typically integrated within a mainstream classroom or year group with additional staffing and resources.
- Terms "ARP" and "Resourced Provision" overlap and are used interchangeably in some LAs.
- ARP placement is named in Section I; commissioning forms part of section 39 consultation.
- Parents have the right to express a preference for or against an ARP placement; LA must give lawful reasons under s.39(4) to refuse.
ARPs and Resourced Provisions overlap and the terms are used interchangeably in some LAs. The functional distinction tends to be that an ARP is integrated within a mainstream classroom or year group with additional staffing and resources, while a Resourced Provision more often runs a dedicated base room with timetabled mainstream access. In an LA that uses both terms, the labels signal commissioning route and funding model more than day-to-day pupil experience.
In a Year 2 ARP commissioned for autism, the picture might be: a Year 2 classroom of 27 pupils including six with EHCPs for autism, with two additional staff (a specialist teacher and a TA) employed via the ARP funding, environmental adjustments to the room (visual structure, low-arousal seating area, sensory zone), and timetabled access to a quiet space along the corridor. Pupils on the ARP are on the host school's roll, with the LA paying the host school an additional banded sum per place.
What parents should ask:
- What is the host school's experience with the named need?
- How is the ARP staffing deployed across the cohort and across the week?
- What is the day-to-day environment: separate base or enhanced classroom?
- What is the exit pathway: do pupils stay in the ARP for the duration of primary, or transition into mainstream where possible?
- What is the funding banding and what does it secure?
ARP placement is named in Section I of an EHCP. The LA's commissioning of an ARP place forms part of the section 39 consultation. Parents have the right to express a preference for or against an ARP placement, and the LA must give lawful reasons under section 39(4) to refuse the preference.
Related terms
The terms parents most often see alongside Additionally Resourced Provision.
Resourced Provision
A specialist unit attached to a mainstream school for pupils with a particular type of SEND. Pupils benefit from specialist input while accessing mainstream classes where appropriate.
Mainstream School
A standard primary or secondary school that admits all children, including those with SEND. Most children with SEND attend mainstream schools, with or without an EHCP.
Section I (EHCP)
The section of an EHCP naming the school or type of school the child will attend. Parents can request a specific school, and the LA must name it unless narrow legal grounds apply.
Where parents ask about this
Parents usually find this page during the Section I conversation, often when the LA has proposed an ARP placement at a school the parent has not yet visited. Searches include "ARP SEND school", "ARP versus mainstream Section I", and "what does additionally resourced mean". A Beaakon advocate can visit the proposed ARP with you, assess whether the staffing and environment match Section F, and support the Section I conversation through to tribunal if needed.
References
The primary legislation, statutory guidance, research, and clinical tools this page draws on.