24 January 2017 weekly update

Dear Colleagues

Published GCSE Results for 2016

On Thursday 19 January the DfE published the national validated GCSE results.

Kent state funded schools achieved a Progress 8 score of -0.04 in 2016, which is slightly below the national average of -0.03. In the headline Basics measure, the proportion of pupils in Kent schools achieving grades A*-C in English and mathematics is 63.7% which is 0.4% above the national average and 3.9% above last year’s result of 59.8%.

Performance in the English Baccalaureate measure also improved. In 2016 it is 29.5%, rising from 26.5% last year, and is 4.7% above the national figure.

On the previous measure (% of pupils achieving 5 or more GCSE grades A*-C including English and maths) Kent schools achieved 59% in 2016, which is an improvement on last year’s figure of 57% and above the 2016 national average of 57.7%.

Improvements have also been made in GCSE A*-C passes for English. The Kent schools success rate in 2016 is 76.2%, compared to 70.4% last year, which is 1.1% above the national average of 75.1%. In mathematics, there is a small increase this year to 68.1%, compared to 66.6% in 2015, which is 0.7% below the national average of 68.8%.

FSM Eligible Gaps at Key Stage 4

The proportion of FSM pupils in Kent Secondary schools who achieved the English Baccalaureate was 7%, compared to 10.3% nationally. For this measure, the FSM attainment gap in Kent is 25.1% which is 8.4% wider than the national gap of 16.7%. Kent is ranked 11^th amongst its statistical neighbours, which is the worst performance in the statistical group.

In the headline Basics measure, pupils in Kent schools achieving grades A*-C in English and mathematics, the attainment gap between FSM pupils and their peers is 34.1%. This is 6.3% wider than the 2016 national gap of 27.8% and ranks Kent ninth amongst its statistical neighbours. While the overall results are positive, these achievement gaps for FSM pupils are very disappointing.

DfE Consultation on proposed changes to Schools Funding and High Needs Funding from 1 April 2018

As you are already aware, the Department for Education (DfE) has recently published its second stage consultation on its proposals for a National Funding Formula (NFF) for Schools and High Needs funding. These proposals build on the first stage consultation which took place last year which focused on the principles and the building blocks to include within a new funding formula. This second consultation focuses on the weightings between the factors and the amount of funding to be channelled through each factor. The consultation runs for 14 weeks and closes on 22 March and Kent County Council and its Schools’ Funding Forum will be submitting a response with our views. I would encourage schools to respond.

We fully support the Government’s proposals to introduce a redistributive approach to funding so that the funding each school receives is based on a consistent, fair and transparent basis, rather than on historic decisions. In terms of the impact for Kent, the positive aspects of the proposals are:

1. Kent schools and academies are set to receive an additional £29.5m (+3.6%) when the NFF is fully implemented. As a first step towards this, the consultation confirms that we will receive £12.9m (+1.6%) in year 1 namely 2018-19.
2. We were fearful that we would lose funding from the proposals affecting the High Needs block. The government is proposing to introduce a floor that ensures no local authority can lose funding from the introduction of a NFF for High Needs. This is helpful.
3. The government is proposing to introduce a hard funding formula in 2019-20. This means that the funding rates are set nationally rather than locally. We were led to believe from the first stage consultation that there would be no local flexibility or decision making. This consultation proposes a continuation of some local flexibility to recognise local issues e.g. pupil growth, and we welcome this.

However, there are some aspects of the proposals that concern us and that we do not support.

4. The schools’ NFF rates are based on current national averages, and then adjusted to put a greater amount of funding into Additional Need (Low Prior Attainment and Deprivation) at the expense of the Core or Basic Entitlement. The rates set by the DfE are not based on a needs led or evidenced based model to show the minimum amount of funding required to run a school (before Additional Need). The level proposed for additional need within the NFF is in addition to Pupil Premium funding which will continue to operate as a separate grant. Our concern is that the amount of funding some schools (those who do not attract much additional needs funding) are set to receive is insufficient to cover the core costs of running a school.
5. The DfE is proposing to introduce a funding floor which means no school can see a reduction of 3% per pupil from the introduction of the NFF. Whilst we think it is important to have a degree of stability in a period of change, this floor is absolute and would leave a large group of schools [1] with enhanced funding for the foreseeable future. It is our view that this floor is flawed as it undermines one of the overarching principles of the NFF (fairness) as in the future similar schools in different areas (inside and outside of Kent) will continue to be funded at different levels.
6. One of the implications of this additional level of protection for schools that will lose funding under the NFF proposals is that it will take a long time for some of our gaining schools to fully receive their gain (unless additional funding is put into the national Schools’ budget). The consultation confirms that increases will be capped at 3% in 2018-19 and a further 2.5% in 2019-20. The consultation is silent on arrangements affecting the next spending review period.
7. The Local Authority will no longer be able to move Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) between the blocks to meet particular pressures e.g. High Needs. Giving 100% of the Schools block to schools removes a significant flexibility that the LA has used in recent times to solve budget pressures within High Needs. Looking ahead to 2019-20, if we have a budget pressure on High Needs and the annual increase provided by the DfE is not sufficient, we will have little or no scope to meet this from other funding sources. Our concern is that we will be forced into making difficult decisions affecting our most vulnerable children, by having to cap the High Needs budget.
8. We have approximately 140 schools in Kent who are likely to lose funding from these proposals. There is no consistent pattern of schools that are losing, as it depends on individual circumstances. Generally speaking schools who currently receive a large amount of minimum funding guarantee funding, on top of the local formula, account for a large proportion of the schools that will lose funding. In addition a number of small schools are set to lose funding from these proposals, because the lump sum proposed is £10k lower than our current formula. In addition the Primary basic per pupil rate (also known as the AWPU rate) is slightly lower.

We have enhanced the school illustration model provided by the DfE, which shows the impact of the proposals on Kent schools, by including amounts per pupil. You can access the Schools National Funding Formula illustration tool here. To show your school data simply enter your 4 digit school DfE number in the appropriate box. Please note that this illustration is based on 2016-17 data and it is possible that the proposals might change after the consultation has closed. It is therefore recommended at this stage that you do not include any of the illustrated movement in your budget planning. Further guidance and advice will be given when school budgets are issued in early March as part of the budget setting process for 2017-18 including future years.

Overall, therefore, despite the headline positive increase for Kent schools we have some fundamental concerns with parts of the consultation proposals and we will be expressing these concerns as part of our consultation response to the DfE. If you would like to understand more about these proposals or if you have any views, you can access all relevant information including the online response form via DfE Schools NFF link. Alternatively you can share your views with your Schools’ Funding Forum representative (PDF, 169.4 KB) who will be discussing the consultation in more detail at the meeting of the Funding Forum on 10 February 2017.

A fuller analysis of the current funding rates compared to those proposed can be found in Appendix 1 (DOCX, 19.1 KB).

If you have any questions about this consultation or the illustration tool please contact Simon.Pleace@kent.gov.uk, Finance Business Partner, Education and Young People’s Services.

Patrick Leeson, Corporate Director Education and Young People’s Services

[1] Typically these will be schools who received large amounts of former Standards Funding e.g. Excellence in Cities, or those schools in LA areas who have traditionally received high levels of per pupil DSG funding e.g. those in Inner London.