Issue - meetings

Report ED18035

Members of the Schools’ Forum considered a report providing an update on a recent consultation undertaken with schools regarding the Dedicated Schools Grant 2018/19.  The report also outlined proposals for a further consultation with schools to decide whether the existing Bromley or national funding formula should be used to calculate schools funding for 2018/19. 

The indicative Dedicated Schools Grant 2018/19 was based on 2017/18 pupil numbers and would be uplifted in December 2017 to reflect the October 2017 census.  In terms of the allocation of funding, the Dedicated Schools Grant 2018/19 would be divided into four blocks comprising Early Years, Schools, Central Schools and High Needs.  No information had been published to date regarding the Early Years Block for 2018/19; however it was anticipated that this Block would be balanced as in previous years to ensure that expenditure matched expected income.  Funding for the Schools Block would be calculated using the National Funding Formula funding for each school plus an additional amount based on the Local Authority’s funding for growth and rates outside the National Funding Formula.  A potential shortfall of approximately £164k had been identified within the Central Schools Block for 2018/19, which funded a range of services including Access and Admissions and Schools’ Central Licensing costs, and for which savings would need to be identified by the Local Authority.  There continued to be significant pressure within the High Needs Block due to a number of reasons including an ongoing increase in pupil numbers.  It was hoped that the SEND4Change Review would realise considerable savings within the Block for future years through the transformation of special educational provision, but this was not expected to alleviate the potential shortfall of £1.7M identified within the High Needs Block for 2018/19.

Members were advised that although the Schools Block would be ring-fenced from 2018/19, local authorities retained limited flexibility to transfer up to 0.5% of Schools Block funding to another block, with the approval of the Schools’ Forum or via the submission of a disapplication request to the Secretary of State for Education where the Schools’ Forum was not supportive of the proposal to transfer funds.  Having considered the indicative Dedicated Schools Grant 2018/19, the Local Authority had requested that consultation be undertaken with schools seeking agreement to transfer £1M from the Schools Block to the High Needs Block to reduce the predicted funding shortfall to £700k, which would equate to 0.49% of Schools Block funding.  17 responses had been received to this consultation, three of which had supported the proposal to transfer funds and nine of which were not supportive.  Five respondents had not indicated a preference.  The Secondary Academy Head Teacher noted that as a group, the Secondary Head Teachers were not in favour of the proposal.

The Head of Education, Care and Health Services Finance advised the Schools’ Forum that the budgetary pressures within the High Needs Block had been driven by a significant increase in demand for specialist provision in Bromley as well as the requirement  ...  view the full minutes text for item 19