Issue - meetings

The Cabinet Member for Education and Schools reported on the proposed allocation of funding to schools for 2016/17.

The Cabinet Member referred to the discussions at the Schools Forum during the consultation on the proposals and highlighted some of the key changes for 2016/17, many of which were related to the narrowing of the gap between primary and secondary funding towards the national median ratio of funding.  The projected overall funding for 2016/17 was £232.966m, although it was noted that the final decision would be made in January 2016 once the latest pupil census data had been validated by the Department for Education.

In response to an enquiry regarding the reduction in funding for secondary schools which operated on split sites, the Cabinet Member confirmed that the current arrangements were interim and would be reviewed in detail in due course.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note the outcome of the Schools Funding Formula briefing sessions at the Schools’ Forum, as referred to in paragraphs 2.6 and 2.7 of the report;

(ii)  Subject to (iii) below, agree to adopt the proposed model as the method for allocating school funding in 2016/17, as set out in section 2 of the report; and

(iii)  Delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Children Services to approve the final 2016/17 school funding formula submission to the Education Funding Agency following consultation with the Schools’ Forum.