To inform schools forum of the government’s proposals for the national school funding formula and to recommended to the council the Budget Working Group’s (BWG) initial proposals for consultation with schools during October and November.

The schools finance manager (SFM) introduced the report. He reported that the final details of the national funding formula had been published. The government had announced an additional £1.3bn to fund the following changes to the original proposals:

·         Basic per pupil funding increased
Primary           from £2,712    to £2,747
Key Stage 3    from £3,797    to £3,863
Key Stage 4    from £4,312    to £4,386

·         minimum per pupil funding (i.e. basic entitlement, additional needs and school led funding) is set at £4,600 for secondary and £3,300 for primary for 2018/19, all Herefordshire schools were already funded above these levels

·         minimum per pupil funding increasing to £4,800 for secondary and £3,500 for primary for 2019/20

·         minimum cash increase in respect of every school of at least 0.5% per pupil in 2018/19 and a further 0.5% in 2019/20.

The government had confirmed that there would be a soft transition to the national funding formula over two years.

A detailed comparison on a school by school basis had been circulated to all schools in Spotlight and was attached as appendix 2 to the report. Herefordshire would gain around 1% under the national formula.

It was reported that a poll of local authorities attending a national DfE conference showed half intended to implement the national funding formula for 2018/19 and the rest were seriously considering it.

The budget working group had met and discussed the options for Herefordshire for the 2018/19 budget. The group had felt that the only sensible option was to implement the national formula as far as funds allowed. Any deviation from the national formula would have to then be undone for 2019/20. The recommendations in the report reflected the views of the budget working group.

The high needs block and central services block would also be formula funded in 2018/19. The central services block would increase by 2.5% and the high needs block would increase by 2.9%.

The local authority had flexibility for 2018/19 to set the minimum funding guarantee at between 0% and -1.5%. However many authorities, including Herefordshire, were seeking to pass on the +0.5% per pupil increase to schools. In order to do this permission would be required from the secretary of state. The SFM therefore proposed an additional recommendation to the forum to support the application to the secretary of state. All Herefordshire schools would gain at least 0.5% per pupil, some would gain slightly more.

The DfE had not released any information on how the national formula would operate from April 2020 onwards.

The SFM reported that the high needs block continued to be under pressure. Many local authorities were overspending on their high needs block, some by considerable sums. A projected overspend of £300k on the Herefordshire high needs block for 2017/18 had been reported to the budget working group. The working group were very clear that action needed to be taken to address the projected overspend. The working group would receive further information at its meeting in November 2017 and the SFM confirmed that he would be bringing proposals to the forum in March 2018 in relation to high needs pressures.

Under the national funding formula the local authority could seek approval from the forum to transfer up to 0.5% from the schools funding block to high needs. The local authority did not intend to pursue this option for 2018/19 but might have to consider it for 2019/20 if other effective options to manage high needs cost pressures were not brought forward.

A consultation paper would be sent to all schools after October half term setting out the proposed approach. As there was no other business for the December forum meeting, the forum would review the response to the consultation in January 2018.

Mr Lewandowski presented a paper to the forum (appendix 1 to the minutes) on the impact of the area cost adjustment on Herefordshire compared with other authorities. In discussion of the paper the following points were made:

·         that when Herefordshire Council had been created it was the third lowest funding authority nationally, since then it had moved a long way up the league table and its funding was consistent with its statistical neighbours;

·         the local authority had worked hard to pass money to schools wherever possible;

·         that the area cost adjustment was understood to be based on national data which excluded teacher’s salaries;

·         that the government was unlikely to change the national formula now but the authority would continue to make representations through the f40 group and through local MPs.

Resolved that:

(a)  Schools forum recommend that the council adopt the strategy proposed by the Budget Working Group as set out in (b), (c) and (d) below;

(b)  the consultation on the 2018/19 budget should propose moving in the direction of the national funding formula, as far as funds allow, to prepare schools for the implementation of the ‘hard’ national formula; and

(c)  the consultation letter make clear that no other sensible options could be found at this time.

(d)  Schools forum consider the responses to the consultation with schools at its next meeting on 12 January 2018.

(e)  Schools forum support an application to the Secretary of State for permission to set a minimum funding guarantee for 2018/19 of +0.5%.