Decision details

Following consultation with the Schools Forum, this report will propose changes to the Schools’ Funding Formula to be implemented with effect from April 2008

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised to:

·        Agree the following in relation to the Local Management of Schools (LMS) Funding Formula for implementation from April 2008:

(a)   That the current balance of primary to secondary funding (on a per pupil basis) be maintained throughout the 3-year budget period 2008-11. The only exceptions to this would be additional national allocations specifically targeted at a particular sector, or new delegations that are already being allocated to a specific sector or group of schools outside of the formula funding. Within these parameters it is further recommended that any above inflation headroom available within the primary sector be allocated in the first instance to the Reception Age Weighted Pupil Units (AWPU), with the aim of lowering the assumed ration of pupil to teachers to 1 teacher and 1 teaching assistant for every 26 pupils over a period of time.

(b)   Transfer School Improvement funding in to the LMS Funding Formula on the following basis:

o       Nursery, primary, secondary and special school lumps sums are increased by £3,356 plus any normal inflationary increase.

o       Reception, key stage 1,2,3 and 4 AWPUs are each increased by £10.41 plus any normal inflationary increase.

o       Nursery unit factors (based on multiples of 13 part-time places) are each increased by £67.67 (i.e. £10.41 x 13/2) plus any normal inflationary increase.

o       Special school place values are each increased by £20.82 plus any normal inflationary increase (and then subject to any further changes that are agreed as part of the review of special school funding).

(c)   Transfer Newly Qualified Teacher (NQT) funding in the LMS Funding Formula with an additional LMS Funding Formula factor being established for NQTs at a rate of £700 per NQT per term, plus the standard teacher’s pay inflationary uplift applied to all other areas of the funding formula. Payment will be made on actual basis termly in arrears.

(d)   Redistribution per pupil and lump sum funding with the Additional Education Needs (AEN), Non-statemented and Statemented Special Educational Needs (SEN) factors on the following basis.

o       A 10% redistribution of per pupil and lump sum funding in to the Free School Meal (FSM) deprivation indicator.

o       A 10% redistribution of per pupil and lump sum funding in to the Low Prior Attainment indicators.

o       Establishing separate SEN Contingencies for the primary and secondary sectors of £50k each, to be allocated annually by the Schools Forum.

o       Including Looked After Children (LAC) as an additional indictor within the AEN factor.

(e)   That no further changes be made to the secondary personalisation factor for the period 2008-11.

(f)     That the primary personalisation factor should be changed so that funding is allocated in the same basis as the existing secondary allocations, i.e:

o       15% based on pupil numbers

o       15% based a lump sum for each school

o       50% based on low prior attainment

o       20% based on high prior attainment

(g)   That further research be undertaken before any move to using the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) measure is considered again. The IMD indictor will not be used within the funding formula during the 2008-11 budget period.

(h)   Secondary Social Inclusion funding be merged into the Non-Statemented SEN factor

(i)     Prior attainment data within the Statemented SEN factor should be presented on the basis of absolute number of pupils rather than percentages.

(j)      That the current formula for Infant Class Size (ICS) funding be retained for the 2008-11 funding period.

(k)   That a Small Secondary School factor should be introduced as set out at paragraphs 74 and 75 of the consultation document.

(l)      The introduction of an age weighted element to the Special School and Enhanced Resource Centre formula funded by reductions in the place values and a redirection of £100k from the centrally held SEN Recoupment budget.

(m)That the existing ceilings and floors mechanism should continue to be used to smooth the transition to revised funding levels for individual schools.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:             That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:                  To ensure that the LMS Funding Formula is reviewed and updated prior to being fixed for the period 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2011.