Agenda item

Report ED18028

The Schools’ Forum considered a report which provided an overview of the operational guidance issued to local authorities in August to help them plan the local implementation of the national funding formula for the 2018 to 2019 financial year.

In August 2017, the DfE published new operational guidance to help local authorities and their school forums to plan the implementation of the new national funding system for the 2018/19 financial year. The full national funding formulae for 2018/19 and 2019/20 would be confirmed in September 2017 with indicative LA level allocations for the schools, central school services and high needs blocks. Final allocations would be issued in December 2017, based on pupil numbers recorded in the October census.

The Government had confirmed that there would be an additional £1.3 billion for schools and high needs across 2018/19 and 2019/20. This would mean an increase for all local authorities over their planned spending for 2017/18.

In 2018/19 and 2019/20 the national funding formula would be used to calculate notional allocations for each school, which would be aggregated and used to calculate the total schools block for each authority, however in those years local authorities would continue to determine final funding allocations for schools through their local formula.

There were a number of both significant and smaller changes to the funding system which were set out in detail in the report. The Head of ECHS Finance noted that these changes had resulted in an additional £1.54m in funding for LB Bromley.

The local authority was required to engage in open and transparent consultation with all schools and academies, as well as with the Schools’ Forum, about any proposed changes to the local funding formula including the method, principles and rules adopted. Any consultation had to include a demonstration of the effect of any changes on individual schools or academies. The Head of ECHS Finance advised members that allowable school funding factors had seen the baseline totality for the DSG increase by 1.5%, however it was noted that this figure was provisional until the October census. Three choices had been suggested for consultation with the schools – to continue to use the existing LA funding formula; to move directly to the national funding formula; to adjust the existing formula to move towards the national funding formula over a period of either one or two years.

A member noted that there was a problem within the funding formula in relation to Special School’s core funding. It would result in a student at a mainstream school being allocated funding of over £16,000, as opposed to £10,000 if they were in a Special School. The Head of ECHS Finance agreed to raise this with the DfE.

Following a discussion, members agreed that the consultation process should begin and schools should be presented with two options - to continue to use the existing LA funding formula or to move directly to the national funding formula. A comment should also be added that if the schools disliked both options they should indicate if they would support a hybrid in between the two. The Head of ECHS Finance suggested that another meeting of the Schools’ Forum, or a working group, should meet to discuss the outcome of the consultation before the next scheduled meeting in November 2017.

RESOLVED: that

1. The report be noted; and

2. The LA consult with all schools providing at least two comparisons and the proposed time frame for consultation be agreed.