DfE made announcements about funding for schools and colleges, over the weekend.

They can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prime-minister-boosts-schools-with-14-billion-package

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/chancellor-announces-400-million-investment-for-16-19-year-olds-education

NDCS has also publised a short blog with their response: 

https://www.ndcs.org.uk/blog/extra-send-funding-announced-but-will-deaf-children-benefit/

The National Audit Office has today (8 March 2018)  published a new report:  Financial sustainability of local authorities 2018

The report syays that the financial health of local authorities across England is getting worse, and highlights the news that despite greater freedoms to increase council tax bills and one-off short-term funds from government, local authorities are struggling to juggle higher demands and cost pressures against significant central government funding cuts of nearly 50% since 2010-111.

Many local authorities are relying on using their savings to fund local services and are overspending on services, which is not financially sustainable. The report goes on to show that if local authorities with social care responsibilities keep using their reserves at current rates, one in ten could have exhausted them within three years.

The report can be found at https://www.nao.org.uk/press-release/financial-sustainability-of-local-authorities-2018/

This report reviews developments in the sector and examines whether the DfE, along with other departments with responsibility for local services, understands the impact of funding reductions on the financial and service sustainability of local authorities.

The Secretary of State has announced the details of the final national funding formulae for schools and high needs to parliament yesterday. The Secretary of State’s statement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/justine-greening-statement-on-national-funding-formula

Details of the formulae can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-for-schools-and-high-needs

Alongside this, there are tables setting out the impact of the formulae for every local authority and school in the country, which can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-schools-and-high-needs.

The Secretary of State for Education yesterday set out the future arrangements for school and high needs funding. In an oral statement to Parliament, she confirmed the introduction of a national funding formula for schools and for pupils with high needs from the 2018-19 financial year. Further details of the funding formulae allocations will be published in September.

The Government is also making available additional funding of £1.3 billion, on top of existing spending plans, in 2018-19 and 2019-20.  As a result, core funding for schools and high needs will rise from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £42.4 billion in 2018-19, and to £43.5 billion in 2019-20.

DfE will shortly publish the schools funding operational guide for 2018-19 and the baselines for local authorities’ spending in the current year. The operational guide on high needs funding will be published in September, as in previous years. In the meantime, DfE can confirm that in 2018-19 local authorities will receive, as a minimum, 0.5% more in 2018-19 and 1% more in 2019-20 compared to what local authorities told us they planned to spend in 2017-18, subject to some technical adjustments explained in what is being published.

Further information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/13bn-for-core-schools-budget-delivers-rise-in-per-pupil-funding.

The Fair Funding proposals were issued yesterday (14 December 2016)

The highlights are that no local authorities will lose high needs funding and some LAs will gain 3% per year over the next two years.

The DfE have also acknowledged concerns that some of us have expressed over the ring fencing of the schools block and have allowed some flexibility.

The schools consultation documents (including illustrative allocations for individual schools) can be found at: https://consult.education.gov.uk/funding-policy-unit/schools-national-funding-formula2

The high needs consultation documents can be found at: https://consult.education.gov.uk/funding-policy-unit/high-needs-funding-reform-2/

If your child has a sensory impairment there may be additional funding for your child, from your local authority, so that s/he is able to fully participate in early years education, such as at the local playgroup or nursery or with a childminder.

Today, (28 January 2016), NatSIP has published a new briefing note on what additional funding may be available from your local authority and how to go about accessing it.

The briefing note can be downloaded pdf here .