Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the trends in the levels of the average per pupil funding between local authorities in England; and if he will make a statement.

The department publishes annual statistics on school revenue funding. The latest publication can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-funding-statistics/2021-22. This gives an overview of trends in school funding from the 2010/11 to 2022/23 financial years. Nationally, per-pupil funding increased by 4.5% over the course of the 2020/21 and 2021/22 financial years and then by a further 4.2% in the 2022/23 financial year, reaching £6,780 (in 2021/22 prices). The majority of core schools funding is distributed via the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG). Local authority level funding allocations of the DSG by year can be found here: https://skillsfunding.service.gov.uk/view-latest-funding/national-funding-allocations/DSG/2022-to-2023.

The schools national funding formula (NFF) continues to distribute funding fairly, based on the needs of schools and their pupil cohorts. Most of the funding is distributed based on pupil numbers and characteristics, which ensures that resources are delivered where they are needed most. The NFF allocates 17% (£6.7 billion) of all funding in the 2022/23 financial year through additional needs factors based on deprivation, low prior attainment, English as an additional language and mobility. The total amount allocated through the deprivation factors in the NFF is increasing by £225 million, or 6.7%, in the 2022/23 financial year. In addition, the 2022/23 financial year supplementary grant will provide significant additional funding for deprivation.

Similarly, the current high needs funding formula, introduced in the 2018/19 financial year after extensive consultation, was a significant step forward in making the allocation of funding fairer. The formula is based on the population of 2- to 18-year-olds in a local authority area and includes several factors which together are intended to reflect the level of need in the area. The government intends to consult and seek views on further changes to the funding formula in due course.

The department’s national funding formulae are not designed to give every local authority the same amount of funding. It is right that areas with more children and young people with additional needs, or areas of socioeconomic deprivation, should get extra funding to enable the right level of support to be given.