SPRING TERM UPDATE 2015
January 2015
2015-16 DSG SETTLEMENT AND FUTURE OF SCHOOL FUNDING
· The DfE announced the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) settlement in December. This will continue to be set out in three blocks (early years, schools and high needs). The DfE states that the underlying schools budget will be kept at flat cash per pupil but there will be an increase in the schools block funding for the 69 least fairly funded LAs. The Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) will continue so that no school will face more than a 1.5 per cent per pupil reduction.
· The future of school funding is insecure and this was highlighted after private briefing notes being used at a Conservative Party press conference were photographed. The notes talked about the need for “difficult decisions” on education funding after the General Election and advised the Conservative frontbenchers at the conference to dodge questions about education cuts if pressed by journalists.
· The NUT, among others, remains concerned that any increase in funding will be offset by the increase in employer contributions to the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, and in employer National Insurance Contributions (as part of the changes to contracting out provisions from 2016).
· The NUT Manifesto for Education states that all political parties need to give a clear commitment to protecting and increasing education funding so that schools can begin to recover from Coalition cuts and we can invest in more and better-paid teachers.
EARLY YEARS’ PUPIL PREMIUM (EYPP)
· After consulting on a pupil premium for early years’ settings, the Government will go ahead with its proposals from April 2015 after a trial in 7 LAs. The EYPP will be payable to 3 & 4 year olds (not 2 year olds) participating in the free 15 hours scheme. Those who get Free School Meals (FSM), are looked after by the LA, are adopted, have left care and are in a child arrangement order will also be eligible.
· Providers will have the freedom to decide how to spend the EYPP and the Ofsted framework will be amended to take account of the use of it. The mandatory deprivation supplement in the Early Years Single Funding Formula (EYSFF) will be retained and LAs will be encouraged to use this to uprate the local EYPP amount.
PUPIL PREMIUM
· The pupil premium for school aged children will be increased by £22.5 million for 2015-16. The primary school rate will increase from £1300 to £1320. The secondary school rate, however, will continue to be paid at £935.
UNIVERSAL INFANT FREE SCHOOL MEALS (UIFSM)
· The Government is making £20 million of capital funding available for new projects aimed at enhancing kitchen and dining facilities. The amount has been made available from the existing UIFSM funding allocation, so is not new money as such. LAs that apply for it will have to confirm that they have spent their allocated amount in support of UIFSM implementation.
· This comes after an extra £150 million capital funding had to be found following the initial announcement on UIFSM because some schools were struggling to implement the policy due to the standard of their kitchen facilities and equipment.
· The Guardian has reported that schools are facing difficulties in receiving pupil premium for those children that are eligible for FSM. Since the introduction of UIFSM parents are less likely to register for FSM meaning schools lose out in pupil premium money. The Guardian spoke to various LAs and found that some are offering incentives to parents to register for FSM and they are rushing to get pupils registered in time for the deadline.
FREE CHILDCARE PLACES
· The Pre-school Learning Alliance has undertaken research into the Government’s free childcare policy. The research was undertaken before the free 15 hours childcare for 20 per cent of the most deprived two year olds was extended to cover all two year olds; however it showed there is a national funding shortfall.
· The research shows that the rate paid to providers by LAs is an average 20 per cent lower than the costs they incur. The funding gap was 17 per cent lower for three and four year olds and 15 per cent for two year olds. This represented a £206m gap in funding in total. The Local Government Association (LGA) warned a House of Lords committee of the funding shortfall in November. The Pre-school Learning Alliance report is available at: https://www.pre-school.org.uk/media/press-releases/583/new-research-reveals-free-childcare-scheme-funding-crisis
ACADEMIES AND FREE SCHOOLS FUNDING
· The LGA has undertaken research that shows LAs have had to use a least £22.4 million from their budgets to cover the cost of schools converting to academy status. As the system currently stands, LAs pay the cost of conversion which includes the costs of any deficit and legal costs. The LGA is calling for the DfE to pay these costs instead. The NUT stated the money LAs have to spend would be better spent on supporting existing schools. The LGA report is available at: http://www.local.gov.uk/media-releases/-/journal_content/56/10180/6794997/NEWS
· In response to parliamentary questions the DfE released figures that show academies are stockpiling cash as contingency funds that LAs would have provided had they remained in LA control. The data showed that 4,400 academies hold cash reserves totalling £2.47 billion.
· A report undertaken by the Institute of Education for the Education Select Committee found “questionable practices” were taking place in academies. The research found there had been some improvement in the financial regulation of academies but there were still issues such as services being paid for by academies that were being provided by the academy sponsors, individual trust board members or by a friend of the head teacher. The NUT General Secretary, Christine Blower, demanded an outright ban on anyone connected to a school making money “either directly or indirectly”. The Select Committee report is available at:http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/Education/Conflicts-of-interest-in-academies-report.pdf
· The Condition Improvement Fund (CIF) has replaced the Academies Capital Maintenance Fund (ACMF) and the Building Condition Improvement Fund (BCIF). The DfE provided advice on how to claim and what the Fund will cover – refurbishing or renewing roofs, windows or toilet areas and compliance issues such as asbestos removal and fire protection etc. A small proportion of the fund will cover projects to expand existing facilities to accommodate more pupils – although this is unlikely to make much improvement to the school places crisis. Successful projects will be announced in March.
16-19 FUNDING
· The EFA is expected to announce the national funding rate for 2015-16 later this month and individual college allocations are due to follow in March.
· Funding for 2015-16 will be particularly challenging as 2014-15 is the final year of transitional protection re the 2010 cuts, the limited protection for the cuts to 18-year-old funding will end and employer pensions and national insurance contributions are due to increase.
· Transitional protection re the proposed new funding formula will be available in 2015-16. Details are awaited from the EFA about potential additional programme funding which could help to protect Sixth form Colleges against what would be another significant funding cut.
COUNCIL BUDGETS AND GOVERNMENT SPENDING
· The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) warned that the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement would require government spending cuts “on a colossal scale” after the election. The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) stated that public spending as a proportion of GDP would fall to a level not seen since the 1930s. The OBR report is available at: http://cdn.budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/December_2014_EFO-web513.pdf
· Birmingham city council announced plans to cut a further 6,000 jobs – it said that by the 2017/18 financial year it expected its workforce to be down to 7,000 compared to 20,000 in 2010. Its new library will cut its opening hours and the council also plans to cut the number of football and cricket pitches and to dispose of some playing fields.
· The NAO has reported that one in six councils are not expected to deliver services within budget this year and more than half of all councils are at risk of financial failure within the next five years. It reported that many single-tier and county councils feared for core services including education. The NAO report is available at: http://www.nao.org.uk/report/the-impact-funding-reductions-local-authorities/
· The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) has surveyed its members and found that more than half (55 per cent) said that making cutbacks would be a major priority in the forthcoming academic year. The figure was 71 per cent for secondary head teachers. ASCL are concerned that the cuts will mean larger class sizes and narrower subject options. The ASCL report is available at: http://www.ascl.org.uk/news-and-views/news_news-detail.survey-reveals-half-of-schools-look-to-cut-costs-to-balance-budgets.html
· Newcastle city council has challenged the Government’s spending cuts claiming that northern and urban areas are losing out the most with affluent areas in the south east being more protected. The council has produced ‘heat maps’ which it says shows the Government’s spending cuts correspond with the political map of the country. The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) stated that the Government was underplaying the “true size and scope of the cuts”. The Newcastle research is available at: http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/news-story/heat-maps
· The Child Poverty Commission has produced its second ‘State of the Nation’ report. The report states the Government’s target to eradicate child poverty by 2020 will not be met and estimates that 3.5 million children will still be in poverty then. The Commision’s report is available at: Report https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/state-of-the-nation-2014-report
· The new European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, Tibor Navraciscs, called for more investment in Education when he spoke at The Economist/European Voice conference in November. He said amongst other positive things that “Priority must be given to education spending”.
FEEDBACK AND CONTACT DETAILS
Schools Forum Representatives
· Please help us keep the NUT contact list for schools forum representatives up-to-date. You can use the link on Hearth to update contact details: http://www.teachers.org.uk/node/13139
Cuts: Impact on Schools and Education Services
· The Pay, Conditions and Bargaining section is monitoring examples of the impact of the Government’s cuts agenda on schools for use in campaigning. Divisions are asked to e-mail any specific examples to Anita at:
NUT SPRING TERM UPDATE 2015 1 21 January 2015