Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to support single-form entry primary schools with reduced student numbers with funding levels.

The government recognises the essential role that small schools play in their communities.

All schools have benefited from the increase to core funding allocated through the schools national funding formula (NFF) in the 2026/27 financial year, including the NFF lump sum, which is set at £152,700. The lump sum is particularly beneficial to small schools more reliant on an element of funding that is not driven by pupil numbers.

The sparsity factor in the NFF provides additional support for schools that are small and remote. Eligible primary schools attract up to £58,600 in sparsity funding in the 2026/27 financial year.

We recognise the pressures caused by demographic changes in some areas. The lagged funding system, where schools are funded on the basis of their pupil numbers in the previous October census, helps to give schools more certainty over funding levels, to aid their planning, and is particularly important in giving schools with falling rolls time to re-organise their staffing and costs.