School funding and finance

Assurance: It’s not sexy, but it’s important

2 February 2021

From boilers to putrefied rat remains, from magic buckets to burglar alarms – assurance is not well understood in education and the consequences can be catastrophic. MAT chief executive Mark Wilson explains

PFI: Challenging overly expensive contracts

18 January 2021

As an academy trust CEO, Andrew Chubb successfully challenged aspects of his school’s PFI contract, leading to substantial savings. He looks here at why PFI often proves unfairly expensive for schools – and what can be done about it

Covid-19 and schools: Taking stock and the challenges ahead

7 October 2020

As half-term approaches, Geoff Barton takes stock on the first five weeks of full re-opening and the challenges still facing schools. He covers Ofsted, examinations, remote education, budgets, accountability and life after the pandemic...

Social justice and schools: Resources & funding

8 June 2020

In a seven-part series, teacher and school leader David Anderson considers how schools can be a key driver for social justice and how we can make our education system more equitable. In part three, he considers huge disparities between state and private schools when it comes to resources and funding

SEND and SENCO support: Tenets of best practice

4 March 2020

The high numbers of pupils with SEN are putting a huge strain on school finances – and on SENCOs themselves. Margaret Mulholland looks at some tenets of best practice, what Ofsted wants to see, and how schools can best support their SENCOs

Integrated curriculum financial planning

6 February 2019

Integrated curriculum financial planning, which brings together curriculum and budget, is all the rage, but it is not a new concept. Julia Harnden explains more and asks what it can do for us...

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Resource management in tough times

21 November 2018

Schools are having to get serious about how they manage their resources. Liam Donnison talks to the leader of a large cross-phase multi-academy trust about their approach to this crucial area

The evidence on school funding

13 June 2018

Complaints about a lack of school funding are frequently hitting the headlines, with concerns over how budget pressures will affect schools and colleges in England. Maire Williams looks at what the evidence tells us

Securing funds from businesses

6 June 2018

Continuing his recent series of fundraising advice articles, Brin Best looks at how schools should engage with business – both locally and further afield – in order to raise funds and attract other support

Are you aware of fraud risk?

16 May 2018

Figures suggest that discovered fraud in the schools sector was in the region of £1 million last year. Expert Dave Verma offers eight steps schools can take to lower the risks

School improvement on a budget

9 May 2018

Today’s school leaders are faced with the challenge of school improvement in times of tight budgets. Warrington head Jon Wright shares his approach to this issue with Liam Donnison

School fundraising: Grant-making trusts

25 April 2018

Many schools do not consider applying to grant-making trusts for funding, even though they are well-placed to make successful bids. Brin Best explains more and lists some of his top trusts to apply to

The Academies Show 2018

3 April 2018
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Now in its eighth year, The Academies Show is the leading education event for all schools, covering every facet of the education system.

Effective school fundraising applications

10 January 2018

The secret to fundraising success can often come down to writing and compiling effective applications. Brin Best offers nine steps to planning and writing successful funding applications
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