£200m education funding cut threatens accountability, council leaders warn

The Local Government Association (LGA) and Solace have said councils are already under immense pressure to support underperforming schools and that plans to reduce the education services grant (ESG) by 20 per cent would add further strain.

Councils currently receive £116 per pupil from the ESG to support maintained schools, while academies are directly paid £140 per pupil.

But the Department for Education’s Savings to the ESG for 2015–16 consultation document reveals its intention to reduce the funding by £15 per pupil from September next year.

In the document, the DfE claims that councils will be able to avoid damaging consequences by thinking innovatively about how they spend ESG money on services.

However, Mark Rogers, president of Solace, said: “Local authorities take very seriously their duty to ensure that there is a great education for every child irrespective of the type of school they attend.

“The DfE’s reluctance to address the confusion surrounding the oversight of schools will only be worsened by this further reduction in the resources available to councils to act as champions for the best education for every child.”

Councillor David Simmonds, chair of the LGA’s children and young people board, added: “With ‘outstanding’ and ‘good’ schools fast-tracked to academy status, councils have a growing task turning around the 25 per cent of schools in England that need to be better.

“Mums and dads need to know that whatever type of school their child goes to, it will be subject to rigorous challenge to ensure high standards.”

The LGA recently called on the DfE to empower councils to hold all schools to account when problems arise.

The organisation claimed that local authorities are in the best position to provide support to failing or struggling schools, but have limited powers to do so.

The consultation on the plans closed in June and the DfE is preparing its response.

The DfE has been contacted for comment.