Minimum per-pupil funding law welcome, but financial challenges remain

The Department for Education (DfE) has published final details of the main changes to the National Funding Formula for 2020/21, including the stipulation that local authorities must provide schools with at least £5,000 per secondary pupil and £3,750 per primary pupil next year.

It comes amid increases to funding which will see the national schools budget receive £2.6 billion more in 2020/21, a further £2.2 billion in 2021/22, and an additional £2.3 billion in 2022/23.

However, Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, remains cautious: “It is great that minimum funding levels are being enshrined in legislation, but this is to do with a historic inequity in the way that school funding is distributed and not the fact that there is not enough money going into the system in the first place.