To consider the report of the Budget Working Group on the following matters: results of the schools budget consultation and submission of provisional school budget to the Education Funding Agency(EFA), forecasts of high needs expenditure for 2015/16 and 2016/17 and the use of Dedicated Schools Grant balances.

The Forum considered the report of the Budget Working Group (BWG) on the following matters:  results of the schools budget consultation and submission of provisional school budget to the Education Funding Agency (EFA), forecasts of high needs expenditure for 2015/16 and 2016/17 and the use of Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) balances.

The Chairman of the Budget Working Group thanked members of the Group for their work and officers for their support.  He commented that the Group continued to support the Forum’s strategy of moving towards the expected National Funding Formula.  Whilst some schools considered the pace of change was too fast others thought it too slow.   It needed to be acknowledged that every school could make a case for more funding but that was not realistic. 

An observation was made that the most recent consultation exercise with schools on the National School Funding Formula 2016/17 had not generated a large response.  It was noted that the BWG could only assume that those who had chosen not to reply were broadly supportive of the strategy.

The School Finance Manager presented the report.  He highlighted the following points on the National School Funding Formula (NFF):

·        He commented on the response to the questions in the consultation exercise in turn.  He noted that, whilst the responses were overall in support of the proposals, there had been opposition by some maintained primary schools to the reduction in the primary lump sum as part of the move towards the national average primary:secondary funding ratio.

·        It was of concern that more schools had not responded to the consultation exercise and attended the consultation meetings.  However, no alternative proposals had been advanced either in the written responses or at the consultation meetings.

·        The DfE continued to advise that authorities should benchmark their funding values as part of the move to a national funding formula.  He drew attention to the benchmarking statistics for basic per pupil entitlement at key stage 3 and key stage 4, deprivation funding and prior attainment funding and the primary:secondary funding ratio.  He outlined how the budget proposals were moving the authority towards the average NFF values. In relation to funding on deprivation, which was higher than the DfE’s fair funding assessment, he commented that consideration might be given in 2017/18 to transferring some funding to basic pupil funding in order to help those schools that received little extra funding other than the basic minimum.

·        In terms of the primary lump sum he noted that this was higher than five of the authority’s statistical comparators.   

·        The BWG had considered that the consultation response required no amendment to the budget proposals.

A member of the Forum commented that of twelve maintained primary schools who had responded to question 1 in the consultation paper relating to the change in the primary:secondary funding ratio, seven schools had supported the change and five had opposed it.  The authority had traditionally recognised the need to provide support to small rural schools acknowledging that they had higher running costs.  The move to the NFF values was making small schools unviable.  A wider debate and consultation within the County was needed on the implications of this change.  Other authorities were opposing the NFF because of its effects.

The Assistant Director commented that the authority had been encouraging small schools to collaborate as one way of reducing costs.  The authority was mindful of the importance of focusing on the quality of education.  The authority, supported by local MPs, also continued to work with the f40 group, comprising lower funded authorities, to seek fairer funding and recognition of the issues caused by sparsity of population.  The DfE was expected to consult in summer 2016 on the NFF which would doubtless provide an opportunity to consider a number of issues.  However, there had to be an awareness too of the impact on the public sector, including the Council, of the national austerity measures alongside the budget pressures that had been and would continue to be felt by all schools.

Councillor Bowen was invited to speak, as Chairman of the Council’s General Overview and Scrutiny Committee.  He noted the concerns about the impact of the move to the NFF on school budgets.  He offered the Committee’s input where it was identified that that would be helpful.

The School Finance Manager then commented on the High Needs Budget Forecasts.  He reported that the projected overspend for 2015/16 was £179k.  This would be met from existing DSG balances.  Although further work needed to be undertaken on the forecast budget for 2016/17, the initial estimate was that expenditure would be £800k higher than this year’s current budget.  This was of concern and had been referred to the high needs task and finish group to consider savings options and report back to the BWG and the Forum in January 2016.  The DfE had advised that there would be no increase in high needs funding for 2016/17.

Finally the School Finance Manager reported on the Dedicated Schools Grant balances and their proposed use.  In summary it was proposed that the underspend of £890k of unused 2 year old grant should be referred to the early years task and finish group to consider options for using this sum, reporting back to the Forum with proposals, and that the remaining underspend of £409k should be retained in balances as a contingency.

He informed the Forum that following the Secretary of State’s approval for the allocation of a sum from DSG in 2015/16 to support the Multi-agency Safeguarding Hub it was intended to seek Secretary of State’s approval for permanent support from DSG in 2016/17 and thereafter.

The School Finance Manager clarified that the underspend on grant for 2 year old education of £890k had been a consequence of delayed take up of two year old places.  The DfE appeared to have overestimated take up nationally but decided not to claw these sums back.  This meant there was a one off underspend and it was proposed that the early years task and finish group make proposals to the Forum for its use.

RESOLVED:  That the proposals for the local application of the National Funding Formula for 2016/17 as set out in the consultation document and as below, be approved for recommendation to the Director for Children’s Wellbeing as follows:

(i)        

1.         Basic entitlement per primary pupil                                                £2,875

2.         Basic entitlement per secondary Key stage 3 pupil                      £3,843

3.         Basic entitlement per secondary key stage 4 pupil                       £4,436

4.         Deprivation per primary ever-6 free school meals pupil               £2,192

5.         Deprivation per secondary ever-6 free school meals pupil          £1,419

6.         Low Prior Attainment per primary pupil                                         £615

7.         Low Prior Attainment per secondary pupil                                    £1,099

8.         Primary lump sum                                                                             £87,000

9.         Secondary lump sum                                                           £143,000

10.       Looked after children, primary and secondary                              £1,300

11.       Primary sparsity, on a taper basis, over 2 miles and

            less than 105 pupils                                                                          £42,000

12.       English as Additional Language per primary pupil                       £505

13.       English as Additional Language per secondary pupil                  £1,216

14.       PFI contract                                                                                       £242,500

15.       Business rates                                                                                  At cost

(Only school and early years members were eligible to vote on the above matter (resolution i).)

(ii)        it be noted that consultation on the budget 2017/18 would include consideration of the amount allocated for deprivation;

(iii)       the de-delegation in 2016/17 of the funding for Trade Union facilities (primary schools only), ethnic minority support, free school meals administration and software licence costs for  financial planning software be approved;

            (Only local authority maintained school members voted on the above matter (resolution iii), with the approval of dedelegation for funding of trade union facilities at primary schools only being voted on by maintained primary schools.)

(iv)       the early years task and finish group be asked to make proposals for spending the £890k early years underspend to Schools Forum by the end of May 2016; and the remaining underspend of £409k be retained as a balance.