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Financial analysis paints bleak picture for future of school funding

The cost of reversing the real-terms cuts to school funding for pupils aged five to 16 would be as much as £3.8 billion, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said.

Previous IFS analysis shows that per-pupil funding allocated directly to schools fell by four per cent in real-terms between 2015/16 and 2017/18. Meanwhile, total school spending per-pupil, including sixth form and local authority spending, fell by eight per cent in real-terms between 2009/10 and 2017/18.

Ahead of the Spending Review, which is expected at some point this autumn, the IFS has published a new analysis showing that it would cost the government £3.8 billion to reverse the eight per cent cut and £1.8 billion to reverse the four per cent cut.

If ministers wanted to then protect spending per-pupil in real terms until 2022/23 – the expected duration of the Spending Review – it will cost an additional £1 billion.

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