Financial leadership in uncertain times - Schools North East · Financial leadership in uncertain...

© Julie Cordiner https://schoolfinancialsuccess.com

Julie CordinerEducation Funding Specialist

Finance UpdateFinancial leadership in uncertain times


• CIPFA accountant with 35 years experience in education

• Former Assistant Director of Education 2005-2015

• 8 years as member of DfE school funding advisory group

• Education Funding Specialist, helping schools & academies in financial difficulty and supporting LAs with education budget strategy and reviews

• Co-founder of School Financial Success, blogger and author of school funding guides


What we’ll cover

• Hot topics

• Preparing for 2019/20 and beyond

• Financial leadership -asserting control in a time of uncertainty


Hot topics


School funding crisis


Getting the basics right

All the things you do for children

Can be overshadowed by problems on the business side


Common issues in FNTIs

Late submission of accounts

Third party, novel, contentious and

repercussive transactions

Inadequate financial control

Poor governance/ risk management

Lack of transparency

Presenter

Presentation Notes

ESFA starting to insist schools and academies use tools and


High profile issues• Executive pay• Pay grants – distribution

mechanism and uncertainty post 2020

• Is DfE making a good case for education in Spending Review?

• Brexit – EU funded projects, contracts, potential impact of earnings threshold on teacher recruitment

• Ofsted inspection of MATs and focus on finance?• Pressure on MATs to grow – impact on SATs?• Parental challenge on SEND - litigation


Reasons to be cheerful• £830m for TPS contributions increase in

2019/20• #LittleExtras £400m capital boost in

2018/19 (DFC)• £350m extra high needs funding • Opportunity North East: £24m• NE to pilot new teacher recruitment

and retention strategy• Online tool – agency & recruitment• DfE improving IT systems (£560m!)• Support for RI schools (dependent on

budget settlement)


Preparing for 2019/20 and beyond


Formula issues to watch out for

• LA formula decisions – values, protection and capping

• Growth factor in the NFF• Impact of new schools – pressure

on formula pot• The mysterious disappearance of

falling rolls funding• Primary low prior attainment

factor turbulence • High needs transfers• Schools Forum meetings


The real problem:

The NFF is a fairer distribution

of not enough money


High Needs NFF – an unfair distribution of not enough money

9%

45%23%

5%

5%

4%3%

3% 3%

2019/20 High Needs NFF distribution

Basic entitlement (special)

Historic spend

Population

FSM

IDACI

Children in bad health

Disability

KS2 low attainment

KS4 low attainment


High Needs tensions

• Increase in EHCPs• More pupils educated in

specialist provision• Higher exclusions• Rise in LA High Needs deficits

• LA High Needs reviews • Education Committee

inquiry• Extra £350m allocated

2018/19 and 2019/20• Impact on your budget


Impact of LA High Needs reviews?

• Organisational changes – mix of provision• Potential approaches to achieve savings:

• expectation that mainstream schools will take/keep more pupils with SEND and vulnerable learners (VL)

• higher thresholds across all parts of the system• challenge on exclusions/expected to provide or commission

earlier intervention• reviews of top-up funding/banding approaches• some LA services could be reduced or disappear• stronger challenge by LA on how schools spend their notional

SEN budget before paying top ups• Opportunity to expand provision – SEND capital plan


The view from 2020/21 onwards

• April 2020 – new Spending Review period

• When will Hard NFF be introduced?

• Inflation and contractual issues?• Data changes• Tension between high-stakes

accountability and insufficient funding

• Impact of uncertainty – decision-making paralysis


The financial leadership toolkit


A strategic approach

• Your vision and priorities• Anticipating funding changes • To grow, change or

consolidate - risks?• Understand how costs

change with pupil numbers• Deployment of staff• Linking the budget with

development plans• Income generation strategy


Financial leadership tips

• Focus on what you can control• Try not to worry about what you can’t control• Manage expectations• Awareness raising on finance – SLT and governors• Encourage debate and creative thinking• Avoid knee-jerk responses• Keep informed


Strategic financial planning

• Multi-year allocations – the missing piece of the jigsaw

• Scenario planning: the benefits Managing expectations,

relieving pressure on you Stimulate a debate and spark

creative solutions Having a plan in place – seize

opportunities for quick wins and early savings


Forecasting your funding

• Funding: average £ per pupil

• Estimated rolls• Best, middle and worst-

case options for percentage changes across 3 years

• Combine then choose three scenarios

• Add in other funding sources – nursery, post-16, Pupil Premium, SEN funding, other grants

Rolls

Best Middle Worst

£per

pupil

Best 1 2 3

Middle 4 5 6

Worst 7 8 9

• Test out your assumptions• Feed into budget planning

software• Identify savings needed

Presenter

Presentation Notes

£ per pupil: Dependency on formula factors Starting point compared to NFF values LA strategy up to 2020/21 Rolls: Housing developments and population changes Local knowledge – your families, other schools Turnover – conversion as year groups roll forward Any planned expansion


Free information – our blog and newsletter

Coming soon: Online courses – what topics would you like to see?Email me at [email protected]


Questions?


Julie CordinerEducation Funding Specialist

Finance UpdateFinancial leadership in uncertain times

Date post:	11-Jul-2020
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