School Funding Formula | Consultation
Update and Consultation – Schools Funding 2024/2025
Introduction
Local authorities are required to submit an annual schools funding formula to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) which details the funding model agreed with its schools forum and the individual school budgets derived from the formula for maintained and academy schools.
Feedback from this consultation will be provided to schools forum members to aid decision making at the meeting on 8 December 2023.
Context
Over the past decade local authorities have been required to adopt a series of policy changes set by the Department for Education (DfE) when calculating budget allocations for maintained and academy schools which has culminated in the National Funding Formula for Schools (NFF). The NFF is intended to ensure funding is allocated to schools in a like manner across all local authorities by removing historical variations that authorities introduced through their local funding mechanisms. Cornwall adopted the full range of NFF factors and rates for the 2020/21 financial year.
Since the introduction of the NFF the formula has been what the Department for Education (DfE) refer to as a “local” NFF with the local authority and schools forum retaining flexibility over certain elements of the formula. For 2024/25 onwards the DFE intend to introduce new legislation to move local authorities closer to the published NFF rates. This is with a view to the DfE assuming responsibility for funding all schools centrally – this is referred to as the “direct” NFF funding formula.
While there is no fixed date for the DfE to introduce the direct NFF we anticipate it will be in place no later than the 2027/28 financial year.
Schools Block
The provisional DSG settlement for 2024/25, excluding growth, includes an increase of £8.094m over 2023/24 (2.02%). This has been calculated based on the existing pupil data sets and will be updated in December based on the October 23 census numbers.
The impact for individual schools will vary depending on their particular funding history and transition to the NFF funding model. Schools whose funding has been subject to capping in recent years should see further gains towards full adoption of the NFF funding rates, while schools not subject to capping will see a minimum increase of 0.5% on their 2023/24 base rate per pupil (subject to Schools Forum agreement).
Since adoption of the full NFF factor values the Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) and Gains Ceiling have been used to deploy any residual funds or adjust for any shortfall.
In 2023 to 2024 schools were allocated additional funding through the Mainstream Schools Additional Grant (MSAG) to reflect growing costs pressures. For 2024/25 this funding has been rolled into the DSG and will be allocated to schools via the NFF by increasing the basic entitlement, FSM6 and lump sum factors as shown in the following table.
Funding Rates by Factor |
|
|
|
|
|
| National Funding Formula Rates |
| |||
Factor | Actual | New 2023/24 Baseline | Provisional | % | |
| 2023/2024 | MSAG Values | 2023/24 | 2024/25 | Change |
AWPU : Primary | £3,394 | £119 | £3,513 | £3,562 | 1.4% |
AWPU : Secondary KS3 | £4,785 | £168 | £4,953 | £5,022 | 1.4% |
AWPU : Secondary KS4 | £5,393 | £190 | £5,583 | £5,661 | 1.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Current FSM top up: Primary | £480 |
| £480 | £490 | 2.1% |
Current FSM top up: Secondary | £480 |
| £480 | £490 | 2.1% |
FSM 6: Primary | £705 | £104 | £809 | £820 | 1.4% |
FSM 6: Secondary | £1,030 | £152 | £1,182 | £1,200 | 1.5% |
IDACI Band F: Primary | £230 |
| £230 | £235 | 2.2% |
IDACI Band F: Secondary | £335 |
| £335 | £340 | 1.5% |
IDACI Band E: Primary | £280 |
| £280 | £285 | 1.8% |
IDACI Band E: Secondary | £445 |
| £445 | £450 | 1.1% |
IDACI Band D: Primary | £440 |
| £440 | £445 | 1.1% |
IDACI Band D: Secondary | £620 |
| £620 | £630 | 1.6% |
IDACI Band C: Primary | £480 |
| £480 | £485 | 1.0% |
IDACI Band C: Secondary | £680 |
| £680 | £690 | 1.5% |
IDACI Band B: Primary | £510 |
| £510 | £515 | 1.0% |
IDACI Band B: Secondary | £730 |
| £730 | £740 | 1.4% |
IDACI Band A: Primary | £670 |
| £670 | £680 | 1.5% |
IDACI Band A: Secondary | £930 |
| £930 | £945 | 1.6% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Low Prior Attainment: Primary | £1,155 |
| £1,155 | £1,170 | 1.3% |
Low Prior Attainment: Secondary | £1,750 |
| £1,750 | £1,775 | 1.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
EAL: Primary | £580 |
| £580 | £590 | 1.7% |
EAL: Secondary | £1,565 |
| £1,565 | £1,585 | 1.3% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mobility: Primary | £945 |
| £945 | £960 | 1.6% |
Mobility: Secondary | £1,360 |
| £1,360 | £1,380 | 1.5% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Lump Sum: Primary | £128,000 | £4,510 | £132,510 | £134,400 | 1.4% |
Lump Sum: Secondary | £128,000 | £4,510 | £132,510 | £134,400 | 1.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sparsity: Primary | £56,300 |
| £56,300 | £57,100 | 1.4% |
Sparsity: Secondary | £81,900 |
| £81,900 | £83,000 | 1.3% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Split Sites basic eligibility | new |
|
| £53,700 |
|
Split Sites distance taper | new |
|
| £26,900 |
|
We are not currently expecting any additional funding for schools outside of the DSG for 2024/25, with the exception of those grants already notified to schools such as the Teachers Pay Grant, which will continue as a standalone grant for 2024/25.
School formula Updates
Split Sites – for 2024/25 the ESFA will require all authorities to use the new split site rates and funding mechanism in the NFF. This allocates funding to schools with premises located off its main site separated by a public road. The basic funding for eligible schools increases to £53,700 (up from the £47,498 used in the current formula). There is also an additional allocation for schools where the distance between sites is greater than 100m. This tapers funding based on the road distance up to a maximum £26,900 for sites over 500m apart.
Notional SEN budgets - As part of the formula setting process local authorities are required to identify an element of each schools budget that should be used to support pupils with SEN – referred to by the DfE as the notional SEN budget. This amount is not ring fenced and schools are able to spend more or less based on their own priorities.
There is no direct link between the actual cost of SEN pupils and the amount of funding schools receive in their delegated budget share with the ESFA use proxy measures such as prior attainments and Free School Meals Ever6 as a means of distributing funding for the purposes of SEN support in schools.
In Cornwall’s NFF submission we currently use prior attainment as the factor which determines schools notional SEN budgets. This represent on average around 6.7% of a schools budget allocation which is now some way behind the average school spend on SEND, which based on EHCP and SEN support numbers is 10.6% in the primary schools and 9.6% in secondary.
We are therefore proposing to update the notional SEN budget in our 2024/25 funding submission to bring the average value across schools up to these figures. Schools should note this will not change the actual amount of funding received – just the indicative amount within the schools budget share that should be viewed as high needs funding.
Falling rolls policy – A paper will be taken to the December meeting recommending the introduction of a falling rolls policy that would support schools with additional funding where there is a temporary reduction in pupil numbers (the school capacity survey would be used to determine where places would be required again within the next 2 years). In such circumstances eligible schools would receive funding for a percentage of these pupils at an agreed rate (the full policy will presented at the December schools forum).
Exceptional Circumstances Factors - Cornwall uses two exceptional circumstances factors in its funding model. These are funding stream within the NFF that sit outside of the mandatory factors and are agreed by the ESFA on a case-by-case basis through the disapplication process. To continue using these factors we require schools forum approval.
- Rents - this factor supports schools with additional rent costs. It is forecast to allocate a total of £154k to 10 primary schools who have previously evidenced additional rent costs attached to classroom buildings, land, and the use of sports facilities
- Additional Sparsity - allocates a lump sum of £50k to small secondary schools meeting the existing sparsity factor criteria and where the pupil numbers on roll are below 350. There is currently one school receiving funding from this factor and this is expected to continue in 2024/25 (total £50k).
The deadline for schools wishing to respond is 5.00pm Thursday 7 December 2023.