school funding | Schools Week

Great professional development for all teachers? It’s more affordable than you think

How much would it cost to give teachers a formal entitlement to continuing professional development? Not as much as you might think, writes James Zuccollo. Professional development for teachers is a surprisingly controversial topic. It is widely believed by policy wonks and researchers to have enormous potential, yet many teachers consider it a distraction. How […]

Exam changes can’t compensate for Covid hit to disadvantaged pupils, says government

Changes to next year’s exams cannot compensate for pupils’ divided experiences during the pandemic, the government has said, even as research from its own exams regulator laid bare the disruption to disadvantaged children’s education. On Monday, Ofqual and the Department for Education published a consultation on measures to “help mitigate the impact of disruption” for […]

Breakfast clubs: Schools to pay 25% of costs from next year

Schools will have to contribute 25 per cent of the costs of running breakfast clubs under the national scheme from next year, after the government announced a cut in subsidies. And only one of the two providers that has delivered the programme to-date will be taking it forward, the government has confirmed. The Department for […]

Where is £3.1bn catch-up cash coming from, MPs ask DfE

MPs have demanded ministers provide answers regarding the £3.1 billion in catch-up funding after the government’s own sums appeared not to add up. It is unclear whether all of the money provided has been additional monies, or if some has been derived from DfE savings elsewhere The education select committee has written to Gavin Williamson […]

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 pulls plug on new voluntary-aided secondary over ‘lack of need’

One of only three proposed new voluntary-aided schools approved for government set-up cash has been cancelled because of a lack of basic need and an available site. Avanti Schools Trust applied to open a new Hindu secondary school in the London Borough of Redbridge in 2018 after the government reopened the process for new VA […]

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 […]

Funding formula like ‘Robin Hood in reverse’ as NAO finds cash shifted from poorer areas

The government’s flagship national school funding formula has shifted cash from deprived schools to their more affluent counterparts, sparking warnings ministers are “taking from the poor and giving to the rich”. The National Audit Office today found the national funding formula, introduced in 2018, has contributed to a “shift in the balance of funding” from […]

Academy trusts’ cash stash rises to £3bn despite pandemic pressures

Academy trusts boosted their reserves and surpluses last year despite the upheaval of Covid, official figures show. New Department for Education data confirms a 20 per cent jump in the average trust’s reserves, up from £0.96 million a year earlier to £1.15 million. The figures cover the year to the end of last August however, […]