The petition of residents of Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire and of friends of the schools in the Henley area,
Declares that a funding review is needed in relation to schools in the Henley constituency; further that this school funding review should address how funding increases will be made in relation to schools in the Henley constituency in real terms beyond the amounts already being spent on schools and how to eliminate the gap between the best and lowest funded schools in the constituency; further that there must be a review of areas of inflationary pressures and situations where schools provide additional services such as social care, or deal with criminal behaviour to examine the real costs of providing education; further that there must be an assessment into the extent and access to capital funding; further that the basic entitlement must form an appropriate percentage of the national funding formula used locally; further that the Department and Treasury must ensure that small primary schools in the constituency remain integral to their communities.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons to ask the Department of Education and the Treasury to conduct a review of school funding in Henley that addresses the issues stated above, in advance of the comprehensive spending review; and further requests that the findings of this review are communicated to the House of Commons.
And the petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by John Howell , Official Report, 22 May 2019; Vol. 660, c. 774]
[P002454]
Observations from the Minister for School Standards (Nick Gibb):
We recognise the budgeting challenges schools face and that we are asking them to do more. The Government have prioritised school spending, even while having to take difficult public spending decisions in other areas. As a result, core funding for schools and high needs has risen from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £43.5 billion this year.
Spending plans beyond 2019-20 have not yet been set and naturally, we cannot pre-empt these decisions. The right level of investment in our schools is crucial for a strong highly skilled productive economy and the Education Secretary will continue to back head teachers to have the resources they need to carry on delivering a world-class education.
The national funding formula (NFF) has delivered on our promise to reform the unfair, opaque and outdated schools funding system. It is now directing money where it is most needed, based on schools’ and pupils’ characteristics -not accidents of geography or history. Since 2017, we have given every local authority more money for every pupil in every school, while allocating the biggest increases to the schools that have been most underfunded, as we continue to address historic injustices.
However, the purpose of the national funding formula is not to give every school the same level of per pupil funding. Some schools will receive more funding than other schools due to a variety of factors, such as their level of additional needs. It is right that schools with lots of pupils with additional needs, such as those indicated by measures of deprivation or low prior attainment, should get extra funding to help those pupils who are most likely to fall behind.
The significant majority of school funding is allocated through the basic per pupil factors of the NFF. We chose to prioritise pupil-led funding in the national funding formula and used some of the additional £1.3billion for 2018-19 and 2019-20 over and above the sums announced at the 2015 spending review, to increase the basic amount that every pupil will attract under the NFF compared to our original proposals, reflecting views received during the NFF consultation process. However, as with all other factors in the NFF, we will keep the basic per pupil amount under review and continue to consider improvements to these in consultation with stakeholders.
We recognise that small schools, particularly small primary schools in remote areas, do not necessarily have the same opportunities to find efficiencies as those elsewhere. The NFF provides a lump sum of £110,000 for every school as a contribution to the costs that do not vary with pupil numbers. This gives these schools certainty that they will attract a fixed amount each year in addition to their pupil-led funding. In addition, the sparsity factor in the formula allocates additional funding of £25 million specifically to schools that are both small and remote. A small, rural primary school eligible for sparsity funding will attract up to £135,000, in total, through the lump sum and sparsity factors.
We are collecting updated data on the condition of the school estate in England, which is due to complete in autumn 2019 and which will help inform future funding policy. We will also continue to look carefully at capital funding in preparation for the next spending review, along with all our priorities for the education system.
The petition of parents, families and carers of pupils at Vale View Primary School, Reddish,
Declares that Vale View Primary School, Mill Lane in Reddish is trying to close early on Friday afternoons to save money meaning that parents will either have to leave work early to pick their children up, or pay for child care in school; further that it will disrupt children’s learning; further that Vale View is not the only school proposing this; further that schools across the country are affected thanks to real term funding cuts of £2.5 billion; further that schools are being asked to make cuts to staffing, drop subjects and other activities and are asking parents to chip in to help run them; further that we think it’s ridiculous that in 2019 schools are being forced to shut their doors early, or cut entire subjects because the government won’t give them the money they need; further that investment in schools is investment in our children’s future; further notes a related online petition on this same matter that has received 113,610 signatures; and further that the government should be doing everything it can to make sure children in England have the best start in life and the best education to help them succeed.
The petitioners therefore request the House of Commons to ask the Government to increase funding for schools, so they can afford the staff and equipment they need without taking cost saving measures like cutting school hours
And the petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Andrew Gwynne, Official Report, 5 June 2019; Vol. 661, c. 233 .]
[P002458]
Observations from the Minister for School Standards (Nick Gibb):
The structure of the school day and week should not be the cause of inconvenience to parents and carers, and it is unacceptable for schools to shorten their school day or week unless it is a direct action to support and enhance their pupils’ education.
We are determined to create an education system that offers opportunity to everyone, no matter what their circumstances or where they live. Children only get one chance of a great education, so the Government have prioritised school spending, even while having to take difficult public spending decisions in other areas. As a result, core funding for schools and high needs has risen from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £43.5 billion this year. Funding is also high by historical standards, figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies show that real-terms per pupil funding for five to 16-year-olds in 2020 will be more than 50% higher than it was in 2000. However, we do recognise the budgeting challenges schools face, and that we are asking them to do more.
School funding for the current year has already been determined. Spending plans beyond 2019-20 have not yet been set, and naturally we cannot pre-empt these decisions. The right level of investment in our schools is crucial for a strong, highly skilled productive economy and the Education Secretary will continue to back headteachers to have the resources they need to carry on delivering a world-class education.
Since 2017, the national funding formula (NFF) has given every local authority more money for every pupil in every school, while allocating the biggest increases to the schools that have been most underfunded. Under the NFF, Vale View Primary School has attracted 2.8% more funding per pupil, compared to 2017-18 (based on 2018-19 pupil data). This is equivalent to an extra £113 per pupil.
Local authorities continue to be responsible for designing the distribution of funding in their areas in order to smooth the transition toward the NFF, and this could mean a school’s final allocation from their local authority could be different from their notional NFF allocation.
Despite prioritising spending on schools and making the distribution of that funding fairer across the country, we do recognise that budgets remain tight. That is why we are supporting schools and headteachers to make the most of their budgets and reduce costs on things like energy, water bills and materials. In August 2018 we announced the School Resource Management Strategy, which provides schools with practical advice on savings that can be made on the more than £10 billion non-staff spending costs across England last year. The document is available on the gov.uk website at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/supporting-excellent-school-resource-management.
The petition of residents of Woodcote and friends of Langtree School,
Declares that a funding review is needed in relation to schools in the Henley constituency; further that this school funding review should address how funding increases will be made in relation to schools in the Henley constituency in real terms beyond the amounts already being spent on schools and how to eliminate the gap between the best and lowest funded schools in the constituency; further that there must be a review of areas of inflationary pressures and situations where schools provide additional services such as social care, or deal with criminal behaviour to examine the real costs of providing education; further that there must be an assessment into the extent and access to capital funding; further that the Basic Entitlement must form an appropriate percentage of the National Funding Formula used locally; further that the Department and Treasury must ensure that small primary schools in the constituency remain integral to their communities.
The petitioners therefore request the House of Commons to ask the Department of Education and the Treasury to conduct a review of school funding in Henley that addresses the issues stated above, in advance of the Comprehensive Spending Review; and further requests that the findings of this review are communicated to the House of Commons.
And the petitioners remain, etc. —[Presented by John Howell, Official Report, 2 July 2019; Vol. 662, c. 1174 .]
[P002483]
Observations from the Minister for School Standards (Nick Gibb):
We recognise the budgeting challenges schools face and that we are asking them to do more. The Government have prioritised school spending, even while having to take difficult public spending decisions in other areas. As a result, core funding for schools and high needs has risen from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £43.5 billion this year.
Spending plans beyond 2019-20 have not yet been set and naturally, we cannot pre-empt these decisions. The right level of investment in our schools is crucial for a strong highly skilled productive economy and the Education Secretary will continue to back headteachers to have the resources they need to carry on delivering a world-class education.
The national funding formula (NFF) has delivered on our promise to reform the unfair, opaque and outdated schools funding system. It is now directing money where it is most needed, based on schools’ and pupils’ characteristics -not accidents of geography or history. Since 2017, we have given every local authority more money for every pupil in every school, while allocating the biggest increases to the schools that have been most underfunded, as we continue to address historic injustices.
However, the purpose of the national funding formula is not to give every school the same level of per pupil funding. Some schools will receive more funding than other schools due to a variety of factors, such as their level of additional needs. It is right that schools with lots of pupils with additional needs, such as those indicated by measures of deprivation or low prior attainment, should get extra funding to help those pupils who are most likely to fall behind.
The significant majority of school funding is allocated through the basic per pupil factors of the NFF. We chose to prioritise pupil-led funding in the national funding formula and used some of the additional £1.3billion for 2018-19 and 2019-20, over and above the sums announced at the 2015 spending review, to increase the basic amount that every pupil will attract under the NFF compared to our original proposals, reflecting views received during the NFF consultation process. However, as with all other factors in the NFF, we will keep the basic per pupil amount under review and continue to consider improvements to these in consultation with stakeholders.
We recognise that small schools, particularly small primary schools in remote areas, do not necessarily have the same opportunities to find efficiencies as those elsewhere. The NFF provides a lump sum of £110,000 for every school as a contribution to the costs that do. not vary with pupil numbers. This gives these schools certainty that they will attract a fixed amount each year in addition to their pupil-led funding. In addition, the sparsity factor in the formula allocates additional funding of £25 million specifically to schools that are both small, and remote. A small, rural primary school eligible for sparsity funding will attract up to £135,000, in total, through the lump sum and sparsity factors.
We are collecting updated data on the condition of the school estate in England, which is due to complete in autumn 2019 and which will help inform future funding policy. We will also continue to look carefully at capital funding in preparation for the next spending review, along with all our priorities for the education system.