This index page provides links to data on the number of students involved with the Ongoing Resourcing Scheme (ORS) as at 1 July.

ORS provides support for a very small number of students, with the highest level of need for special education, to help them join in and learn alongside other children at school. Students are funded under either a Very High or a High needs level, and in 2010 a third ‘extension’ category was created to include an additional 400 students with moderate-to-high special needs, who were older than nine and had missed out on the ORS by a narrow margin in the past.

As at 1 July 2019, there were 9,718 students receiving ORS funding. These students represented 1.2% of the total schooling population. Boys made up 67% of students receiving ORS funding, and the ethnic distribution was similar to the general schooling population. There were 7,276 students (75%) funded at High Need and 2,430 students (25%) funded at Very High need. Only 12 students were funded under the extension category of ORS.

The table below provides a number of downloads relating to the number of students in ORS funding scheme.