Issue - meetings

A New Funding Formula for Mainstream Schools and Academies

 

 

Meeting: 30/10/2012 - Cabinet (Item 6)

6 A New Funding Formula for Mainstream Schools and Academies pdf icon PDF 95 KB

Minutes:

Background:

 

This report set out details of a new funding formula for mainstream schools and academies.

 

It was noted that the government had placed a duty on local authorities to formulate a new funding formula. The formula had to adhere to the government’s regulations and would take effect from April 2013. The deadline for notifying the Department for Education of the agreed funding formula was 31 October 2012.

 

Proposals for the new funding formula had been prepared with assistance from a working group of Medway head teachers, governors and school business managers. Where elements of the current formula were no longer permissible, the group considered which factors should be used in future and this was shown in Appendix 1 (primary schools) and Appendix 2 (secondary schools) to the report. The potential impact of the new formula had been assessed and the results were shown in Appendix 3 to the report.

 

Members were advised that the new regulations allowed little flexibility but where options were available these were considered in the report, together with the responses from schools, who had been consulted between 18 September and 2 October. Options related to:

·        How to reflect pupil deprivation in the new funding formula

·        The method of funding special educational needs (SEN) in primary schools

·        The provision of a lump sum to ensure small schools remain viable

·        funding for transitional protection

·        Proposals for defining the elements that contribute to each schools notional SEN budget

·        The ‘de-delegation’ of funds for High Needs SEN

·        Proposals for the primary/secondary funding ratio.

 

The Schools Forum had considered the proposals on 9 October 2012 and its recommendations were set out in the report.

 

A Diversity Impact Assessment screening had been undertaken on the proposals and was attached at Appendix 4 to the report. It had been found it was not necessary to undertake a full impact assessment.

 

Decision number:

Decision:

174/2012

The Cabinet instructed officers to implement a new funding formula for schools and academies as follows:

           

(a)               To calculate the pupil deprivation element of the funding formula for primary schools using a 50/50 combination of entitlement to free schools meals and Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) data;

 

(b)              To calculate the pupil deprivation element of the funding formula for secondary schools using IDACI data only;

 

(c)               To calculate the funding for low cost, high incidence Special Educational Needs (SEN) in primary schools using the number of children not reaching 73 points in their Early Years Foundation Stage Profiles;

 

(d)              To set the lump sum element of the funding formula at £108,430;

 

(e)               To cap the gains from the new funding formula at 1.5% per pupil;

 

(f)                 To calculate the ‘Notional SEN Budget’ based on 50% of the funds allocated for pupil deprivation and 100% of the funds allocated for low cost, high incidence SEN;

 

(g)              To de-delegate funds for high needs SEN from the SEN element of the funding formula;

 

(h)              To ensure that the current primary/secondary funding ratio is maintained.

 

Reasons:

 

The local authority is  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6