Minutes

46      SCHOOLS FUNDING FORMULA AND EARLY YEARS FUNDING FORMULA 2022-23 – The Directors: Children and Families, and Governance and Communities  submitted a report updating the Cabinet Member regarding the 2022-23 funding allocations for Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) and the amount available for Individual School Budgets (ISB) and Early Years Providers, seeking approval for the Schools Funding Formula for North Lincolnshire mainstream schools and Early Years Funding Formulas (EYFF) for early years providers.

The Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) published operational guides annually to help local authorities and their Schools Forum plan the local implementation of school funding formulas and deliver early years entitlements for the forthcoming year.

On 16 December 2021 the ESFA published the 2022-23 Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) Allocations, based on October 2021 School Census data. The allocation for North Lincolnshire was £158.902m, an increase of £6.092m from last year. The DSG consisted of four funding blocks listed in the report at paragraph 2.2.

The schools block funded all mainstream schools and was ring fenced. The Operational guide set out how ISB shares could be calculated.

North Lincolnshire Councils local school funding formula mirrored the schools National Funding Formula (NFF).

Key changes to the schools NFF in 2022 to 2023 were detailed in the report at paragraph 2.5, and key features of the local authority formula arrangements in 2022 to 2023 were listed at paragraph 2.6 of the report.

The Early Years Block funded all providers of early education to two, three and four-year-olds.

It was a statutory duty of the LA to provide up to a maximum of 15 hours funded early education for 38 weeks of the year for all three and four-year olds in North Lincolnshire, and an additional extended 15 hours for children of working parents that met an eligibility criteria. More than 90% of three and four-year olds took their universal 15 hours entitlement to early education, of these approximately 44% took additional extended hours. 

Two-year olds could claim up to 15 funded hours of early education for 38 weeks of the year where their family circumstances made them eligible.  To meet the criteria families must have been eligible for free school meals (FSM) or be in receipt of Universal Credit/tax credits and had an annual income of under £16,190 before tax, or where a child was looked after by a Local Authority. Take-up of two-year olds was consistently higher than the national average.

Local authorities determined their own local formula that met the requirements of statutory guidance in consultation with Schools Forum.  Early years’ providers received funding based on participation of individual children each term.

This report set out the final proposals for the North Lincolnshire schools funding formula and the North Lincolnshire Early Years Formula for 2022-23.

Resolved – (a) That the factors detailed in appendix 1 to calculate the individual schools budget shares for mainstream schools within North Lincolnshire for 2022-23 be used, (b) that the schools block earmarked reserve to finance the shortfall between the schools block  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1.