I have received the following update from the Government on Schools Funding:
16 July 2015
The Government is committed to developing world-class schools across the country, so that every child, everywhere, can fulfil their potential. That’s why in the Conservative manifesto we committed to protecting the money following children into school, to confirming the extra £390m fairer funding uplift from 2015-16 into budgets for 2016-17 and beyond, and to making funding fairer.
Today we are taking the first steps towards meeting these commitments by publishing the per pupil funding rates for each Local Authority’s schools budget for 2016-17. This protects the per pupil funding in each authority from 2015-16, meeting the commitment to protect the national schools budget and to base-lining the £390m extra funding from last year. You can see how this affects each Local Authority at the following address:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/schools-funding-arrangements-2016-to-2017
We are also publishing the Education Funding Agency’s Operational Guide; to allow Local Authorities to start the process of consulting with their schools on how the funding should be distributed in their area.
Final funding allocations to each authority will be made in December, in line with the latest data on their pupil numbers.
Base-lining the 2015-16 Minimum Funding Levels in 2016-17 is an important step towards making funding fairer. However it remains the case that a school in one part of the country can receive over 50% more funding than an identical school in another part of the country.
We are therefore committed to making schools and early education funding fairer and will put forward our proposals in due course.
We recognise the links between funding for early education, schools and pupils with high cost Special Educational Needs. These are complex issues to consider, and we will consult extensively with the sector and the public on them.
Yours sincerely
Sam Gyimah MP
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Childcare and Education