Agenda item

Report of the County Treasurer

The Forum received the School Budget 2021-22 de-delegation, central expenditure and education functions report. This sought approval from the Forum for the Local Authority to retain DSG funding to deliver services on behalf of schools and Early Years. Members noted that the budget areas proposed for de-delegation in 2021-22 were the same as those in the previous years.

Forum members representing all mainstream maintained schools considered the budget areas listed in the table above and voted to de-delegate these areas for 2021-22.

Maintained schools now had the option to join the DfE Risk Protection Agreement (RPA) or to choose to stay with the LA for their insurance cover.

Academy Forum Members already using RPA shared positive experiences of using this alternative to commercial insurance cover, which Forum Members found helpful.

On considering whether to stay with the LA or move to RPA, Forum Members representing all mainstream maintained schools agreed to join RPA for insurance cover.

Funding in the CSSB was split into historic commitments and ongoing functions. Funding for historic commitments had been reduced by a further 20% from 2020/21. Members received details of the heading under which Staffordshire retained funding for historic commitments, together with indicative 2021/22 budget levels:

Following a budget reduction in 2020/21 the early Help Services budget had now been fully delegated to schools.

All Forum Members gave consideration to the areas of retained historic commitment funding and voted to approve the continued funding of these areas centrally at no higher than the indicative amounts.

Ongoing Education Functions were funded by a combination of council tax and DSG., with 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 2021/22 was £3.5m, funded by DSG through the CSSB.

All Forum Members voted to approve the ongoing functions allocation in the CSSB.

As in previous years it was proposed that the growth funding allocation be used to fund pupil growth in the National Funding Formula (approx. £1.5m in 2020/21), and allocations as per the Growth Fund and Infant Class Size policies (approx. £800k). Any underspend would contribute to DSG balances (as previously discussed).

All Forum Members voted to approve the continuing use of the Growth Funding allocation as set out above.

The LA was asking for £1.9m (4.3%) of Early Years funding to be retained centrally. This expenditure funded the Entrust SDA contract, along with back office administration and overheads, with Members receiving a breakdown of these costs.

All Schools Forum Members agreed to approve the proposed level of central support services for early years provision.

The LA asked for provisional approval of a levy of £55.68 per pupil from maintained schools to fund Education Functions previously funded by the Education Services Grant.

All mainstream maintained Schools Forum Members agreed to approve the levies per pupil (set out in Appendix 4 of the report) to fund the costs of the associated services.

RESOLVED – That:

a)    the outcome of the maintained school vote on de-delegation, including whether to join the DfE RPA for their insurance, (as detailed above) be approved;

b)    the indicative allocations for both historic commitments and ongoing functions within the Central School Services Block be approved and retained centrally for this purpose;

c)    the continued use of the formula driven Growth Funding allocation be approved;

d)    the retention of £1.9m of Early Years funding centrally be approved; and,

e)    the levy per pupil in 2021-22 to fund statutory duties performed by the LA and previously funded by the ESG general duties be approved.