31 October 2003
Local authorities are demanding a guarantee from Charles Clarke that the promised 4% funding increase for schools next year will not starve other vital services of cash.
Councils are concerned that the pledge for 2004/05, given by the education secretary to Parliament on October 29, will merely shift the funding shortfall from education to other services.
The Local Government Association is now seeking an assurance from Clarke that next month's provisional local government finance settlement will fully fund the package outlined.
LGA chair Sir Jeremy Beecham said the settlement would also have to take into consideration all the cost pressures facing schools next year. 'We will be looking for a guarantee of our own, that the overall grant to local government ensures that schools' extra funding today is not at the expense of other key services tomorrow.
'The teachers' pay settlement and the rising pay bill in schools must also be fully funded.'
Beecham also warned that 'further centralisation and compromise fixes', as illustrated by Clarke's announcement, would prevent authorities from directing funding where it was needed.
'The sensible planning of local education can be done only in conjunction with spending decisions that take account of local needs and are integrated with other local services, such as social services,' he said.
Earlier, Clarke told MPs that all schools would receive a per-pupil funding increase of 4%. Those with falling rolls would receive more for each student, to help cover costs not dependent on pupil numbers, but may see their overall budgets fall in cash terms.
LEAs will get a per-pupil increase of 5%–6.5%. The government has based its figures on an estimated 3.4% increase in schools' total costs. This assumes an inflation-related pay increase for teachers, in the region of 2.5%.
An extra £120m emergency fund will also be available to LEAs in 'transitional relief' to ensure balanced budgets in two years.
But Clarke made clear that he would not hesitate to use his statutory powers next year if LEAs failed to passport their full settlements to schools.
He told MPs the package would 'restore confidence' in the education funding system. 'Ensuring adequate resources for local authorities and providing a minimum increase in funding for every school… will address directly the problems of this year and help secure stability,' he said.
PFoct2003
