school finances | Schools Week

Only two of DfE’s 11 major projects ‘likely’ to achieve aims on time and budget

Only two of the Department for Education’s 11 major projects are considered “likely” to achieve their aims and come in on time and on budget, according to government experts. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority has highlighted its concerns over a series of flagship education initiatives, including the National Tutoring Programme, T-levels, teacher training reforms and […]

Fair funding reforms won’t be fully rolled out for at least 3 years

Government reforms to make school funding fairer will now not be fully implemented for at least another three years. The Department for Education today launched another consultation over its national funding formula, asking schools how and when it should complete plans to end a “postcode lottery” between council areas. Steve Edmonds, director of advice and […]

DfE told to reveal its working out on £90m pupil premium funding ‘stealth cut’

The government must publish a full breakdown of its pupil premium “stealth cut” analysis as the current explanation only reveals part of the story, a think tank has warned. Last week the Department for Education finally admitted schools would miss out on about £90 million in pupil premium funding. The admission comes after ministers discreetly changed […]

Schools handed extra cash to take NQTs off-timetable after Covid hits induction

Schools will receive cash to fund additional off-timetable development for their current cohort of newly qualified teachers (NQTs) as a result of Covid disruption to induction. The Department for Education announced on Monday that state schools in England will be eligible for the funding for every NQT due to complete their induction this summer. The […]

New academy rules put trust autonomy at risk, say sector leaders

Sector leaders are warning the new academy trust handbook could undermine board autonomy , and demanding the government confirm whether it spells “broader intervention” in future. Most of the changes to the rebranded 2021 edition, previously known as the academies financial handbook, are simply pulling in existing school guidance from elsewhere. Minister Baroness Berridge’s foreword […]

Speed read: ‘Academy trust handbook’ 2021 published as DfE rebrands key guide

The DfE has rebranded the academies financial handbook as the academy trust handbook, with ministers dubbing the latest edition a “one stop shop” for academy leaders. The update has also seen financial notices to improve renamed as “notices to improve”, to reflect that the warnings issued to academies sometimes cover “broader governance issues”. Baroness Berridge, […]

DfE blocks MAT’s bid to take shares in outsourcing firm

An outsourcing firm has urged the government not to be “hung up on fear of the different” after officials thwarted a multi-academy trust’s bid to take shares in the for-profit company. Schools Week revealed in March that Transforming Futures Trust (TFT) had signed a £1 million deal to outsource most of its central staff and […]

INVESTIGATION: Did schools reinvest their money from playing field sales?

Schools are not using money raised from selling playing fields into new sports facilities despite promises to the contrary, a Schools Week investigation has revealed. Schools and councils with surplus land, including disused playing fields, can seek government permission to sell it off but, in most cases, are obliged to use at least some of […]

Two for-profit sponsors back out of academy market

Two academy trusts set up by for-profit providers that have made millions running schools across the globe have ended their sponsorship of English academies. The Erudition Schools Trust is in liquidation after its three schools in the Midlands were rebrokered to new trusts last year. Erudition was sponsored by K12, a firm founded by a […]