West Berkshire Council point finger at Government for schools shortfall

THE Conservative-led West Berkshire Council has blamed the Tory Government for the £6m shortfall facing schools across the district over the next two years.

At a schools forum held in Newbury recently, it was revealed that, for all of the 55 maintained schools in West Berkshire, a closing deficit of £6,174,886 is expected in two years if nothing is done to balance the books.

A third of the primary schools that reported figures showed a deficit, with 17 reporting a surplus, the largest of which – £101,058 – was at Mrs Bland’s Infant School.

None of the secondary schools will carry a surplus if nothing is done by 2017/18.

This year the picture is less bleak, with primary and secondary schools expected to carry a surplus of £608,995.

Commenting on the figures, West Berkshire Council said that, without additional funding from central Government, the picture would not get any better.

Spokeswoman Peta Stoddart-Crompton said: “The Department for Education has not increased the funding rate for several years now so it is becoming harder for schools to balance their budgets as costs rise.”

The council dismissed an alternative method – a clawback system, which allows surplus budgets to be “clawed back” by the council to be used elsewhere, for example with struggling schools – as “contentious, particularly as schools are encouraged to plan spending over multiple years”.

It said: “The DfE does not encourage clawback and does not apply it to academies. The way schools are funded is prescribed by the DfE and is mainly based on the number of pupils, so if numbers rise then those schools with a growing roll will receive more funding.

“There is an argument that West Berkshire schools should receive a higher level of government funding through the dedicated schools’ grant – our funding rate is well below the current average, which would benefit all our schools.”

Currently, the funding rate for the district, derived from the dedicated schools grant is £4,368 in 2015/16 compared to the national average of £4,699.

John O’Gaunt School in Hungerford is facing the single largest deficit – currently predicted to close at £967,030 this year, which could soar to £2m if left unchecked.

Headteacher Sarah Brinkley said in a statement to parents that the school had been running a budget deficit for many years.

She added: “Our deficit situation cannot improve until we have that magic staff/pupil ratio.”

Last week, governors at the school confirmed they were exploring the possibility of converting into an academy, effectively severing ties with West Berkshire Council and solving its deficit crisis.

The predicted closing balance for schools in 2017/18 is based on the current detailed budget for 2015/16 extrapolated forward.

Explaining the figures confirmed earlier this month West Berkshire Council added: “The main aim of three-year budgets is to flag schools who need to work with the local authority to look at structures and costs going forward, so that appropriate action can be taken to ensure budgets are brought into balance.”