Agenda item

Report of the County Treasurer

The Schools Forum is required by the Finance Regulations to annually approve central expenditure (ongoing and historic commitments).  Maintained school members only are required annually to:

·         Vote on each de-delegated budget heading by phase

·         Approve a levy per pupil to fund duties performed by the Local Authority and previously funded by the ESG general duties rate.

For 2020-21 DSG allocations to Local Authorities will again be made using the National Funding Formula. DSG allocations will not be known until December, and Local Authorities need to submit school budgets to the ESFA by 21 January. This timescale means decisions on the budget areas in this report need to be made at this time to enable schools and services time to plan for their budgets and responsibilities for 2020-21.

De-delegation

Under the national funding arrangements the government wanted schools to have the opportunity to have as much funding and responsibility delegated to them as possible. Each year the Schools Forum representatives for maintained primary and secondary schools were required to vote on behalf of the schools they represented to determine whether or not a range of costs currently met centrally would transfer to maintained schools for them to manage themselves. The budget for these costs would also transfer to schools on a formula basis.  Academies were not part of these arrangements since these responsibilities and the funding for them were automatically delegated to academies through the ESFA use of the local funding formula.

The budget areas de-delegated last year following the equivalent vote are set out in the table below. The budget values were estimated for all primary and secondary schools (i.e. including academies) to provide the context of values involved. Actual figures for 2020-21 would be finalised over the next few months as the settlement and school census become available.

Areas proposed for de-delegation for 2020-21:

Having considered these areas, the voting Forum Members for each phase agreed these budget areas to be de-delegated for 2020-21.

Central School Services Block

There were some areas of central expenditure which needed to be considered by the Schools Forum and the draft Finance Regulations set out the requirements for approvals/consultation.  It was noted that final regulations had not yet been issued, so in the event that final regulations were different, the content of the budget report may need to change as a result.  Funding in the Central School Services Block was split into Historic Commitments and Ongoing Functions.

Historic Commitments

For historic commitments the following rules applied:

a.    The level of expenditure cannot be increased above 2017-18 levels

b.    The expenditure against these budgets must be as a result of arrangements that already existed before 1 April 2013

c.    The Schools Forum must approve the amount of the budget set for each heading

The ESFA had indicated that from 2020-21 it would start to reduce funding for historic commitments. The detail of their approach has not yet been announced. As Staffordshire had reduced spend in this area by delegating the School Improvement budget in 2018-19, this should provide some protection against funding reductions.

The headings under which Staffordshire currently retains funding for Historic Commitments is set out in the table below, together with indicative 2020-21 budget levels. The Families First LST funding was approved in principle by Schools Forum at the July meeting.

Schools Forum approved the continued funding of these areas centrally at no higher than the indicative amounts, with final values to be confirmed at the meeting in March 2020.

Ongoing Functions

Ongoing Education Functions were funded by a combination of council tax and DSG.There was an annual liability for Teachers Pensions Added Years of c.£7.1m. which was funded by council tax.  The estimated cost for other ongoing education functions for 2020-21 was £3.4m. These functions were funded by DSG through the Central Schools Services Block (CSSB).  The Schools Forum approved the allocation in the central schools services block for ongoing functions to be used to fund these services.

Central Schools Expenditure

2.     Staffordshire did not retain significant amounts of funding under this heading, to which the following rules applied:

a.    The Schools Forum must approve the amounts of funding to be retained centrally.

b.    For the pupil growth fund and infant class size funding any underspend from the previous year must be added to the ISB.

c.    For the pupil growth fund and falling roll fund the Schools Forum must approve the criteria used and receive regular updates on the use of funding.

Schools Forum approved the continuing use of the pupil growth and infant class size funds at the indicative levels set out above.

Central Early Years Expenditure

The requirement here was for the Schools Forum to approve the central expenditure.  This is not the expenditure provided to settings for their running costs in providing the free entitlement for two, three and four year olds but is in respect of support services for providers of early years education.   Following the introduction of the Early Years Funding Formula, central overheads are limited to 5% of the Early Years Block Funding for 3 and 4 year olds. For 2020-21, the authority was asking for £1.8m (4.2%) to be retained centrally.

Members expressed a number of concerns that they were being asked to make a decision without sufficient information and needed to have a much more in depth and clearer understanding of the figures and the way the budget would be spent.  It was therefore agreed that the decision on Central Early Years expenditure should be deferred until members had the opportunity to consider a more detailed breakdown on the funding at a future meeting.

Education Functions for Maintained Schools Only

Members considered a list of the functions provided to maintained schools only and previously funded by the general duties ESG rate, along with the levy per pupil that would be required to fund each of these services.  Maintained Schools Forum members agreed to the levies per pupil outlined  to fund the costs of the associated services.

RESOLVED – That:

a)    The areas proposed for de-delegation 2020-21 be approved by maintained Schools Forum members;

b)    The continued funding of historic commitments centrally, at no higher than the indicative amounts set out above, with final values to be confirmed at the meeting in March 2020 be approved;

c)    The allocation in the central schools service block for ongoing functions be approved to fund the services outlined;

d)    The continuing use of the pupil growth and infant class size funds be approved at the indicative levels set out above;

e)    A decision on the proposed level of central support services for early years’ provision be deferred to a future meeting, pending a more detailed breakdown of the figures; and

f)     The proposed levies per pupil to fund the cost of the associated services be approved by maintained School Forum members.