Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Deferred
National funding formula's disadvantage elements increased due to rising SEND complexity
Conclusion
The Department committed to keeping the balance of funding across different interventions under review.32 It told us that pupil premium and the disadvantage elements of the national funding formula should be considered together–with pupil premium being specifically directed towards disadvantaged children, and the funding formula using disadvantage as a proxy for wider need.33 The Department explained that the rising incidence and complexity of special educational needs contributed to its decision to increase the disadvantage and deprivation elements of the funding formula given a significant overlap between special educational need and disadvantage.34
Government Response Summary
The department is reviewing the allocation of core funding for schools, looking at the operation of the schools national funding formula (NFF), including the operation of “additional needs” funding in the NFF, with decisions for 2026-27 onwards informed by this review.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: September 2025 2.2 The department is reviewing the allocation of core funding for schools. This review is looking at the operation of the schools national funding formula (NFF), including the operation of “additional needs” funding in the NFF. The NFF targets funding to areas with larger proportions of pupils with additional needs, including deprivation. The deprivation factors in the NFF act as broader proxy measures for schools that are most likely to need extra resources to support their pupils to reach their full potential – including pupils with special educational needs and disability (SEND). 2.3 The department is reviewing the operation of the additional-needs factors within the NFF, including the weightings that they have within the formula. This will look at the evidence 28 base for these funding decisions, including the extent to which the factors used correlate with incidence of additional needs, including SEND. The interaction between pupil funding and NFF funding will be considered as part of this review. The NFF allocations and pupil premium funding rates for 2025-26 have already been published, and so the focus of the review will be on future funding years. This review will inform decisions on the NFF and pupil premium for 2026-27, and the following years of the spending review period.