Issue - meetings

In order to prepare for a national funding formula, direction has been given to Local Authorities to review their formula of school funding to ensure that it fits with the government’s intentions for the future. The LA has developed its proposal and consulted schools on the proposal in order to allow the cabinet to decide on a formal methodology to submit to the Education Funding Agency (EFA).

Councillor Eleanor Jackson in an ad hoc statement expressed surprise that St Mary’s Writhlington was apparently not considered to have any pockets of deprivation.  She asked for clarification of the definition used for deprivation.

Councillor Dine Romero in proposing the item, said that deprivation was not an exact science; the DfE were proposing to use fewer factors in the definition, including measures of special educational need, free school meals, and others.  She thanked the officers for the hard work they had done in preparing the consultation and assessing the responses.

Councillor Romero explained that there would be a cap on losses and gains until 2014/15, to mitigate the effects of the new formula.  She moved that option (2) of the 3 options should be the one adopted by Cabinet, because it retained funding at 7% rather than reducing it to 6%, and it balanced the weighting equally between the IDACI index and the free school meals figures.  She felt that this addressed concerns that the IDACI index did not adequately reflect rural deprivation.

Councillor Paul Crossley seconded the proposal.  He emphasised that changing any funding formula was always difficult, which was why the Cabinet had wanted to consult with schools before making the changes.  The proposals would meet the government’s requirement that the funding formula must recognise social deprivation.

On a motion from Councillor Dine Romero, seconded by Councillor Paul Crossley, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To AGREE that option 2 is submitted as the methodology to be adopted by Bath and North East Somerset Council from April 2013. This reflects an amendment to the proposal for the funding of Deprivation changing the split of resources between the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index and free schools meals to 50:50 split. (Compared with the 75:25 split in the consultation proposal)