Liverpool’s education budget is unlikely to receive a “significant increase” in funding and underspends may need to be stretched to balance the books.
An underspend of around £7m on the budget for education across the city has been reported following the closure of the books on the last financial year and may well be needed to plug any gaps left by government support, according to a report to the Liverpool Schools Forum. The panel of school representatives and officers from across the city, will meet virtually and in private on Wednesday to discuss the outturn for the last financial year.
A report to members has identified that the £7.3m that was not used during the last financial year may be required to support additional places being created in specialist schools and to balance the budget for 2023-24. The analysis of the last 12 months found that an underspend of almost £1m occurred in early years provision as numbers remained below pre-covid figures.
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The report said: “However this will result in a retrospective reduction in the allocation so a significant portion of the carry forward will largely be utilised to offset the potential reduction in dedicated schools grant.” A delay in special educational needs providers returning to normal operations during the year also led to an underspend, it said.
While it is thought that Liverpool’s direct education funding from the government will reduce slightly as a result of the factors outlined in the report, it has yet to be confirmed. Funds of around £500,000 have been carried forward by the council which is held for employment and legal claims.
The bulk of the underspend, according to the report, came from higher needs, with “out of city placements not increasing by as much as had been anticipated as places were created in local authority provision.” The report added: “There was also an underspend on alternative provision again as places were created at the KS4 unit.
“The authority is currently experiencing significant increased demand for specialist provision for September 2022 and a number of additional places have already been created for September so it is likely that this underspend will need to be used to fund these places.” A more detailed review of the spend will be undertaken when all placements are confirmed, but the report, written by John Byrne, Liverpool Council strategic finance manager for education and schools, warned the cash left over may need to go further next year.
It said: “It is also likely that the significant increases in funding that the authority has benefitted from over the last three years will not be repeated in 2023-24 so some of this funding may be needed to balance 2023-24 budget.”
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