Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the publication date of the School Teacher Review Body report on the ability of head teachers to plan their school budgets.

As part of the normal pay round process, the independent School Teachers’ Review Body has submitted its report and recommendations to Government on teacher pay for the 2023/24 academic year. The Department is considering the recommendations and will publish its response and the report in due course.

Funding for both mainstream schools and high needs, including the additional funding announced in the Autumn Statement, is £3.5 billion higher in the 2023/24 financial year, compared to the 2022/23 financial year. The Department provides these increases to school revenue budgets so that schools can cover cost increases in the year ahead, including to teacher pay.

Schools should plan for how teacher pay awards could be managed within this existing funding. It would be sensible for schools to consider the range of possible scenarios on pay that might materialise, and what the implications would be for their individual school.