Agenda item

Maintained School Excess Balances

Maintained School Excess Balances including working group feedback

 

David Baxter

 

Minutes:

6

 

6.1

 

 

 

6.2

 

 

 

 

 

6.3

 

 

 

 

 

6.4

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.6

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.7

 

 

 

 

 

6.8

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.9

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.10

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.11

Maintained School Excess Balances Including Working Group Feedback (Standing Item)

Members received a paper prior to the meeting entitled ‘School Balances Working Group Feedback’, which David Baxter (DB) spoke about.

 

Members noted that a working group, consisting of Natalie McSheffrey, David Baxter, Hazel Danson, Darren Christian and Michelle Lee had met on 17th September to look at and discuss excess balances within Kirklees Primary and Secondary Maintained Schools.

 

DB reported that the 2020/21 balances of all maintained schools were first reported to Schools Forum on 25th June 2021 and again on 10th September 2021, highlighting excess balances. Nineteen maintained schools (14 Primary and 5 Secondary) had an excess surplus balance as at 31 March 2021.

 

DB reminded Members that a report to Schools Forum in September 2021 listed those schools which had exceeded the 8% and 10% tolerance of their total budget for the 2020/2021 financial year. The working group stated above had met on 17th September to look at these schools balances, in order to gain a greater understanding of the reasons behind their excess budgets.

 

Members were provided with a table which showed the combined balances of the excess balances in maintained primary and secondary schools.

 

Area

Number of Establishments

Combined Balance

Primary Schools

109

£8.4 million

Special Schools

    4

£0.4 million

Secondary Schools

    7

£4.8 million

Total

120

£13.6 million

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

Findings

DB reported that all schools with excess balances submitted a detailed return to the Schools Finance team, which outlined and explained how they planned to use the build-up of excess balances. He added that a selection of these schools was reviewed by the working group to evaluate the reasons for maintaining their excess balance and not utilising it.

 

Members noted that reasons for reporting increased balances were mainly attributable to the impact of COVID 19. This had a cumulative impact in some schools as savings were generated during the year because of the inability to spend resources as planned, due to the lockdown period.

 

DB explained that the Schools Forum had challenged excess balances in the past. As balances across maintained schools stood at £13.6 million, he informed Members that a control on surplus balances might need to be considered in line with guidance, which states that ‘where some level of redistribution would support improved provision across a local area’.

 

Following on from the meeting on the 17th September, DB reported that ML had suggested that a year on year comparison would help when considering how schools had managed their balances from 31st March 2020 to 31st March 2021. This information was shared with Members, which highlighted that of the nineteen schools with excess balances, only two of them had reported a reduced surplus. The five secondary schools had reported a combined increase in balances of just over £1.1 million in the period reviewed.

 

ML stated that the Schools Forum had received information relating to excess school balances over a 3 year period in the past, which prompted questions and challenge from members of the group. She asked if this information could be provided at a future meeting of the Schools Forum.

Action 12: That DB be asked to provide this information to a future meeting of the Schools Forum

 

DB was thanked, as were members of the Schools Forum Working Group, for their work on this.

 

 

Supporting documents: