Schools block funding formulae 2022 to 2023: analysis of local authorities’ schools block funding formulae
Published 14 June 2022
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2022
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1. Summary
This document provides a summary of the local funding formulae submitted by each local authority to the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) in January 2022. The local formulae specify how each local authority has allocated their dedicated schools grant (DSG) schools block funding for 2022 to 2023.
This document provides charts and brief commentary on the ranges of unit funding amounts authorities have selected in 2022 to 2023, and the proportions of schools block funding distributed under each of the permitted factors.
There is an accompanying datafile, which is explained in the Information about the datafile spreadsheet section. Small details of funding formulae may change subsequently, compared to the figures presented here as a result of late amendments.
Note that in the charts shown throughout the document, the range of values along the x-axis includes the value at the lower end and excludes the maximum value. So, for example, a band labelled 4% to 6% will include values of exactly 4% but will exclude values of exactly 6%. The charts are colour coded throughout the document:
- charts showing percentages are black/grey
- all other charts are blue
We also published a summary of local authorities’ funding formulae for 2021 to 2022.
2. Background
This year was the fifth year of the national funding formula (NFF).
The NFF means that school funding is distributed based on the individual needs and characteristics of every school in the country. Detailed information about the NFF can be found in the Schools block national funding formula: technical note.
For 2022 to 2023, each local authority’s schools block DSG allocation was calculated based on the notional NFF allocations for schools in their area. Local authorities then set their own funding formula in order to distribute their schools block allocation. This document provides an overview of the 2022 to 2023 formula factor values chosen by local authorities as of 12 April 2022. For 2022 to 2023, schools are funded using a maximum of 15 factors.
Schools supplementary grant funding will be incorporated into core budget allocations for 2023 to 2024. This will mean the funding being rolled into the schools national funding formula (NFF) for 2023 to 2024, leading to an increase in unit values for the factors included in the report.
3. Main points
Overall, the data reflects further progress towards the NFF in its fifth year. Local funding formulae in 2022 to 2023 show that a majority of local authorities have moved towards the NFF since its introduction in 2018 to 2019. When allowing for the area cost adjustment (ACA)[1] it shows that, of 150 [2] local authorities in England, 112 have moved every one of their factor values in their local formulae closer to the NFF over the past 5 years or remained within 1% of NFF values[3] . Of these, 74 local authorities are now using a value within 1% of the NFF value for every factor[4].
There are 96 local authorities that have set their minimum funding guarantee (MFG) to mirror the minimum 2% per-pupil increase in funding provided through the NFF funding floor. The remaining local authorities were required to guarantee at least 0.5% more per pupil, so that all schools will gain in cash terms per-pupil compared to 2021 to 2022.
The data also reflects that every single local authority has delivered the minimum per-pupil funding levels of £4,265 per pupil for primary schools, and £5,525 per pupil for secondary schools.
[1] The NFF applies an area cost adjustment (ACA) to each of the individual factors. The data shown in this document does not include the ACA adjustment. When comparing the factors used by each local authority against the NFF the ACA adjustment, where applicable, should be taken into account.
[2] All comparisons to the NFF exclude both City of London and Isles of Scilly as these are not included in the NFF calculations. For comparisons to the NFF there are 150 local authorities. In all other cases the full 152 local authorities which are required to set a local formula are included.
[3] The equivalent figure was 105 in 2021 to 2022.
[4] The comparison excludes the mobility factor as this was only included in the NFF from 2020 to 2021. The equivalent figure was 73 in 2021 to 2022.
4. Commentary
This chapter looks at each of the principal formula factors in turn. It sets out:
- the values local authorities have chosen for those factors in their local formulae
- how these have changed from previous years
- where relevant, how they compare to the values in the NFF, as set out in the Schools block national funding formula: technical note
- the proportion of funding allocated through each factor[1]
Comparisons to the NFF are not precise, due to the effect of the ACA, which reflects variation in local costs. Individual factor values in the NFF do not include the impact of the ACA, which is applied (at a rate of 1 to 1.186) as a separate element within the overall NFF calculation. By contrast, the values of factors in local authorities’ local formulae implicitly include the effect of the ACA.
[1] In the charts showing the ranges of unit funding amounts local authorities have used for the formula factors, only those local authorities which have chosen to use that factor in their formula in each year are shown. However, in the charts showing the proportion of funding allocated using the factors, all local authorities are displayed, with those not choosing to use the factor (where its use is not mandatory) shown as allocating 0%.
5. Basic per-pupil funding
This is a mandatory factor which every local authority must use in their 2022 to 2023 formula. Local authorities are permitted to choose different basic entitlement rates for primary pupils, for key stage 3 (KS3) pupils and for key stage 4 (KS4) pupils; but they must specify a primary basic entitlement of at least £2,000, and KS3 and KS4 basic entitlement values of at least £3,000.
The majority (79%) of primary amounts selected by local authorities are in the range of £3,000 to £3,500, although there are a few significant outliers of over £4,000. 19 of the 20 local authorities with the highest primary amounts are in London. The amounts selected are similar to last year, although the distribution of the primary amounts shows further movement towards the NFF rate of £3,217.
The NFF primary per-pupil value increased from £3,123 in 2021 to 2022 to £3,217 in 2022 to 2023. Many local authorities that were following the NFF values in 2021 to 2022 have therefore followed this approach in their local formulae in 2022 to 2023, meaning that when ACA is included, whilst the majority of local authorities have allocated between £3,000 and £3,250 there is also an increase in the number allocating between £3,250 and £3,500.
Figure 1: basic entitlement primary age weighted pupil unit (AWPU)
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| £2,500 to £2,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,750 to £3,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £3,000 to £3,250 | 90 | 106 |
| £3,250 to £3,500 | 30 | 24 |
| £3,500 to £3,750 | 13 | 8 |
| £3,750 to £4,000 | 9 | 5 |
| £4,000 to £4,250 | 5 | 4 |
| £4,250 to £4,500 | 1 | 1 |
| £4,500 to £4,750 | 2 | 2 |
| £4,750 to £5,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £5,000 to £5,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £5,250 to £5,500 | 0 | 0 |
| £5,500 to £5,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £5,750 to £6,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £6,000 to £6,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £6,250 to £6,500 | 0 | 1 |
| Above £6,500 | 2 | 1 |
The distribution of the KS3 and KS4 amounts show a move towards the NFF rates of £4,536 and £5,112. For KS3 basic entitlement, 84% of local authorities are allocating between £4,250 and £5,000 per pupil, and for KS4, the majority (77%) are allocating between £4,750 and £5,500 per pupil. Again, the local authorities with the largest secondary basic entitlement amounts are mostly in London.
The NFF KS3 per-pupil value increased from £4,404 in 2021 to 2022 to £4,536 in 2022 to 2023 and for KS4 they increased from £4,963 to £5,112. Many local authorities that were following the NFF values in 2021 to 2022 have, therefore, followed this approach in their local formulae in 2022 to 2023, bringing their primary per-pupil value above £4,500 for KS3 and £5,000 for KS4 when ACA is included.
Figure 2: basic entitlement KS3 AWPU
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| £4,000 to £4,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £4,250 to £4,500 | 7 | 99 |
| £4,500 to £4,750 | 104 | 17 |
| £4,750 to £5,000 | 17 | 18 |
| £5,000 to £5,250 | 9 | 7 |
| £5,250 to £5,500 | 7 | 2 |
| £5,500 to £5,750 | 2 | 3 |
| £5,750 to £6,000 | 2 | 2 |
| £6,000 to £6,250 | 1 | 0 |
| £6,250 to £6,500 | 2 | 2 |
| Above £6,500 | 1 | 2 |
Figure 3: basic entitlement KS4 AWPU
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| £4,000 to £4,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £4,250 to £4,500 | 7 | 99 |
| £4,500 to £4,750 | 104 | 17 |
| £4,750 to £5,000 | 17 | 18 |
| £5,000 to £5,250 | 9 | 7 |
| £5,250 to £5,500 | 7 | 2 |
| £5,500 to £5,750 | 2 | 3 |
| £5,750 to £6,000 | 2 | 2 |
| £6,000 to £6,250 | 1 | 0 |
| £6,250 to £6,500 | 2 | 2 |
| Above £6,500 | 1 | 2 |
Across all local authorities 106 are mirroring the NFF basic entitlement almost exactly (110 have used a value within 1% of the NFF values of £3,217 for primary, 117 within 1% of the NFF KS3 value of £4,536 and 115 within 1% of the NFF KS4 value of £5,112).
The final chart in this section, figure 4, shows the proportion of schools block funding that local authorities are allocating through the basic per-pupil funding factor. Overall, the proportion of funding being allocated through the basic entitlement ranges from 62% to 84%, with 84% of local authorities allocating between 70% and 80%. Across all local authorities, 74.3% of funding is being allocated through basic entitlement, compared to 74.5% of funding in the 2021 to 2022 formulae and 75.4% in the NFF.
Figure 4: Percentage of funding allocated as basic entitlement funding
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 50% | 0 | 0 |
| 50% to 55% | 0 | 0 |
| 55% to 60% | 0 | 0 |
| 60% to 65% | 1 | 1 |
| 65% to 70% | 15 | 12 |
| 70% to 75% | 71 | 73 |
| 75% to 80% | 57 | 59 |
| 80% to 85% | 8 | 7 |
| 85% to 90% | 0 | 0 |
| 90% to 95% | 0 | 0 |
| 95% to 100% | 0 | 0 |
6. Deprivation
This is another mandatory factor which every local authority must use in their 2022 to 2023 formula. Local authorities can distribute their deprivation funding using any combination of the 3 indicators: children eligible for free school meals, children eligible for free school meals in any of the last 6 years or Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI) data.
IDACI ranks are taken from the English Indices of Deprivation (IMD) for 2019 published by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. IDACI is a measure of income deprivation and identifies the proportion of children in out-of-work households or on low incomes.
Since 2021 to 2022 we have used 2019 data from the IDACI in place of 2015 data. Pupils are assigned to IDACI bands based on rank rather than score. For example, Band A consists of pupils in the most deprived 2.5% of lower super output areas (LSOAs). The size of each of the bands were created for 2021 to 2022 and were set to maintain a similar proportion of pupils nationally in each band as there were in 2020 to 2021.
The IDACI scores are grouped into 7 bands as per the table below:
|
IDACI rank |
IDACI band value |
|---|---|
|
1 to 821 |
A |
|
822 to 2,463 |
B |
|
2,463 to 4,105 |
C |
|
4,106 to 5,747 |
D |
|
5,748 to 9,032 |
E |
|
9,033 to 12,316 |
F |
|
Over 12,316 |
G |
Figure 5 indicates that there is some variation between local authorities in the amount of funding allocated through this element of the factor. Of the 152 local authorities, 150 are using IDACI in their deprivation factor and are using it to allocate 3.5% of their total funding, the same as in 2021 to 2022.
Figure 5: percentage of funding allocated through the IDACI factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 2 | 2 |
| 0% to 2% | 32 | 32 |
| 2% to 4% | 50 | 53 |
| 4% to 6% | 46 | 44 |
| 6% to 8% | 22 | 21 |
| 8% to 10% | 0 | 0 |
| Above 10% | 0 | 0 |
Because of the different permutations of deprivation indicators available for local authorities to use for this factor, it is not immediately straightforward to calculate per-pupil funding amounts on a comparable basis. For the purpose of this analysis, total funding allocated through the 3 deprivation factors is divided by the number of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM), to obtain an estimate of the deprivation funding per FSM pupil.
Figure 6 indicates that there is some variation between local authorities in the amount of deprivation funding allocated per FSM pupil, although 97% are allocating between £1,500 and £3,000 per FSM pupil.
Figure 6: total explicit deprivation funding per FSM pupil unit
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Below £1,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 1 | 1 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 2 | 3 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 14 | 10 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 39 | 27 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 46 | 43 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 35 | 44 |
| £2,500 to £2,750 | 11 | 17 |
| £2,750 to £3,000 | 3 | 3 |
| £3,000 to £3,250 | 0 | 3 |
| £3,250 to £3,500 | 0 | 0 |
| £3,500 to £3,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £3,750 to £4,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £4,000 to £4,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £4,250 to £4,500 | 0 | 0 |
| Above £4,500 | 1 | 1 |
There is considerable variation in the proportion of schools block funding which local authorities are allocating to schools through the deprivation factor, ranging from 0.3% to 17.3%.
There is some variation in allocation within local authorities from last year, but across all local authorities, the allocation has increased to 9% in 2022 to 2023 compared with 8.6% in 2021 to 2022 and 9.1% in the NFF.
Figure 7: percentage of funding allocated through the deprivation factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0 | 0 |
| 0% to 2% | 2 | 1 |
| 2% to 4% | 3 | 7 |
| 4% to 6% | 24 | 25 |
| 6% to 8% | 29 | 29 |
| 8% to 10% | 29 | 31 |
| 10% to 12% | 31 | 36 |
| 12% to 14% | 18 | 11 |
| 14% to 16% | 13 | 10 |
| 16% to 18% | 3 | 2 |
| 18% to 20% | 0 | 0 |
| Above 20% | 0 | 0 |
7. Looked-after children
Use of this factor in funding formulae is optional, and only 9 local authorities have chosen to use it, compared to 10 in 2021 to 2022. The factor is not included in the NFF and this may be the reason for the continued decrease in the number of local authorities using it in their 2022 to 2023 formula (in 2017 to 2018, before the introduction of the NFF there were 88 local authorities using the factor).
The indicator local authorities can use for this factor is children looked after for any period of time, as at the end of March 2021. Of the local authorities that are using the factor, 77.8% are allocating less than £1,250 per pupil. Figure 8 shows the amount allocated per-pupil by those local authorities using the factor.
Figure 8: looked-after children - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 143 | 142 |
| Below £500 | 2 | 2 |
| £500 to £750 | 3 | 3 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 1 | 1 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 1 | 2 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 1 | 0 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 0 | 1 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 0 |
| Above £2,500 | 1 | 1 |
Across all local authorities (including those not using the factor), a total of 0.002% of schools block funding is being allocated through the looked-after children factor.
Figure 9: percentage of funding allocated through the looked-after children factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 144 | 143 |
| 0% to 0.1% | 7 | 7 |
| 0.1% to 0.2% | 1 | 2 |
| 0.2% to 0.3% | 0 | 0 |
| 0.3% to 0.4% | 0 | 0 |
| 0.4% to 0.5% | 0 | 0 |
| Above 0.5% | 0 | 0 |
8. Low prior attainment
While use of this factor is optional, all local authorities are using the indicator for primary pupils (as in the 2021 to 2022 formulae) and 151 are using the indicator for secondary pupils. City of London have not used the indicator for secondary pupils as they do not have any secondary age pupils in their sole school (this was the same as in 2021 to 2022).
For primary pupils, the indicator is the number of children in years 1 to 6 assessed under the new early years foundation stage profile as not achieving a good level of development.
For secondary pupils, a new national curriculum and assessment was introduced in the 2015 to 2016 academic year, which all years have now been assessed under. The proportion of pupils who fall into the low prior attainment bracket is higher for higher year groups, so a national weighting has been applied to each of these years to prevent them overly influencing the funding levels. Separate weightings have been applied to each year. Please see paragraph 67 of the Schools operational guide 2022 to 2023 for further details.
Due to the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19), no national tests were carried out in 2020 or 2021 so for pupils in years 1, 2, 7 and 8, no assessment data was available. In this case the relevant 2019 assessment data for the school was used as a proxy for the proportion of eligible pupils. Where a school had no pupils that were assessed in 2019 the corresponding local authority average for the year was used.
The distribution of the low prior attainment rates for both primary (figure 10) and secondary pupils (figure 11) show further movement towards the NFF values of £1,130 and £1,710 respectively.
There are 116 local authorities mirroring the NFF on prior attainment (117 have selected a primary value within 1% of the NFF value of £1,130 and 119 within 1% of the NFF value of £1,710).
Figure 10: primary low prior attainment - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 0 | 0 |
| Below £250 | 0 | 0 |
| £250 to £500 | 1 | 4 |
| £500 to £750 | 5 | 4 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 7 | 10 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 123 | 123 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 13 | 8 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 1 | 0 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 1 | 2 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 1 | 1 |
| £2,500 to £2,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,750 to £3,000 | 0 | 0 |
| Above £3,000 | 0 | 0 |
Figure 11: secondary low prior attainment - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 1 | 1 |
| Below £250 | 0 | 0 |
| £250 to £500 | 1 | 1 |
| £500 to £750 | 1 | 2 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 2 | 1 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 1 | 1 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 2 | 5 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 106 | 109 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 29 | 28 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 7 | 2 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,500 to £2,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,750 to £3,000 | 1 | 1 |
| Above £3,000 | 1 | 1 |
Figure 12 shows that 89% of local authorities are allocating between 5% and 10% of their schools block funding through this factor, compared with 88% last year. Across all local authorities, the percentage of funding allocated through the factor is 6.3%, compared to 6.4% in 2021 to 2022 and 6.7% compared to the 2022 to 2023 NFF.
Figure 12: percentage of funding allocated through the low prior attainment factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0 | 0 |
| 0% to 1% | 0 | 0 |
| 1% to 2% | 0 | 0 |
| 2% to 3% | 4 | 5 |
| 3% to 4% | 4 | 3 |
| 4% to 5% | 7 | 9 |
| 5% to 6% | 30 | 17 |
| 6% to 7% | 78 | 78 |
| 7% to 8% | 27 | 36 |
| 8% to 9% | 1 | 3 |
| 9% to 10% | 0 | 0 |
| Above 10% | 1 | 1 |
9. English as an additional language (EAL)
In 2022 to 2023 EAL is used by 151 local authorities, 1 more than in in 2021 to 2022.
Local authorities can choose 1 of 3 indicators for this factor: the number of pupils with EAL who entered the compulsory school system in the last 1, 2 or 3 years. The NFF allocates funding to EAL pupils entering the compulsory school system in the last 3 years. Of the 151 local authorities including the factor, 145 have used the same criteria as the NFF, an increase from 143 in 2021 to 2022.
The distribution of the EAL rates for both primary and secondary pupils shows further movement towards the NFF values of £565 and £1,530. For the primary indicator, 94% of local authorities are allocating between £500 and £750 per pupil. For the secondary indicator 84% are allocating between £1,500 and £1,750 per pupil.
There are 116 local authorities mirroring both the primary and secondary NFF value for EAL (117 have selected a value within 1% of the NFF primary EAL value of £565 and 117 have selected a value within 1% of the NFF secondary EAL value of £1,530).
Figure 13: primary EAL - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 1 | 2 |
| Below £250 | 0 | 0 |
| £250 to £500 | 5 | 6 |
| £500 to £750 | 143 | 140 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 2 | 3 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 1 | 1 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 0 | 0 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 0 | 0 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 0 |
| Above £2,500 | 0 | 0 |
Figure 14: secondary EAL - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 2 | 3 |
| Below £250 | 1 | 1 |
| £250 to £500 | 0 | 0 |
| £500 to £750 | 2 | 2 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 0 | 1 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 2 | 2 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 5 | 97 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 127 | 37 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 11 | 7 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 1 | 1 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 0 |
| Above £2,500 | 1 | 1 |
Fewer pupils attract funding through the EAL factor than through many other factors. Across all local authorities, just 1% of funding was allocated through this factor, almost unchanged from 2021 to 2022.
10. Mobility
Use of this factor is optional, and 128 of the 152 local authorities have chosen to use it compared with 121 in 2021 to 2022. Most local authorities have used values close to the NFF values of £925 for primary pupils and £1,330 for secondary.
The indicator for this factor is the number of pupils with an entry date in the last 3 years which is not typical[1] and is payable on the number of pupils exceeding 6% (for example, if a school has 10% mobile pupils, funding is applied to 4%).
Primary per-pupil amounts range from £98 to £2,000, and the secondary per-pupil amounts from £140 to £2,000.
[1] For year groups 1 to 11, ‘typical’ means that the first census on which a pupil is recorded as attending the school (or its predecessors) is the October census. ‘Not typical’ means that the first census a pupil is recorded as attending the school is a January or May census. For the reception year, ‘typical’ means the first census is either October or January.
Figure 15: percentage of funding allocated through the EAL factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 1 | 2 |
| 0% to 1% | 86 | 86 |
| 1% to 2% | 42 | 43 |
| 2% to 3% | 18 | 16 |
| 3% to 4% | 5 | 5 |
| 4% to 5% | 0 | 0 |
| Above 5% | 0 | 0 |
Figure 16: primary mobility - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 24 | 31 |
| Below £250 | 1 | 0 |
| £250 to £500 | 1 | 1 |
| £500 to £750 | 2 | 2 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 98 | 104 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 24 | 10 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 0 | 0 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 1 | 0 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 0 | 1 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 1 | 1 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 1 |
| Above £2,500 | 0 | 1 |
Figure 17: secondary mobility - per-pupil values chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 24 | 32 |
| Below £250 | 1 | 0 |
| £250 to £500 | 0 | 0 |
| £500 to £750 | 1 | 1 |
| £750 to £1,000 | 1 | 2 |
| £1,000 to £1,250 | 2 | 2 |
| £1,250 to £1,500 | 108 | 104 |
| £1,500 to £1,750 | 13 | 8 |
| £1,750 to £2,000 | 1 | 0 |
| £2,000 to £2,250 | 1 | 1 |
| £2,250 to £2,500 | 0 | 1 |
| Above £2,500 | 0 | 1 |
Only 1 local authority incorporating the mobility factor in their 2022 to 2023 funding formulae is using it to allocate more than 0.5% of their schools block funding, and only 12 are allocating more than 0.25%. Across all local authorities, some 0.11% of schools block funding is being allocated through this factor, an increase from 0.05% in the 2021 to 2022 formulae.
Figure 18: percentage of funding allocated through the mobility factor
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 24 | 31 |
| 0% to 0.25% | 116 | 120 |
| 0.25% to 0.5% | 11 | 1 |
| Above 0.5% | 1 | 0 |
11. Total funding through the pupil-led factors
Basic per-pupil entitlement, deprivation, looked-after children, prior attainment, EAL, and mobility are pupil-led factors.
Although there is considerable variation across local authorities in the choices of factors used, the per-pupil amounts, and the proportions of funding allocated through each one; overall, there is strong consistency in the proportions of funding allocated through the pupil-led factors as a whole.
Figure 19: local authority level percentage of funding allocated through pupil-led factors
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Below 80% | 0 | 0 |
| 80% to 82% | 0 | 0 |
| 82% to 84% | 0 | 0 |
| 84% to 86% | 3 | 3 |
| 86% to 88% | 12 | 14 |
| 88% to 90% | 31 | 35 |
| 90% to 92% | 43 | 48 |
| 92% to 94% | 55 | 44 |
| 94% to 96% | 8 | 8 |
| 96% to 98% | 0 | 0 |
| 98% to 100% | 0 | 0 |
A requirement for the 2022 to 2023 formulae is that each local authority must allocate a minimum of 80% of schools block funding through these pupil-led factors[1].
All local authorities are allocating more than 80% of their funding through a combination of the pupil-led factors, the lowest being 84.9%. In total 85% of local authorities are allocating between 88% and 94% of their funding through these factors.
Across all local authorities, a total of 91.15% of funding in 2022 to 2023 formulae is being allocated through the pupil-led factors. This compares to 90.9% in 2021 to 2022.
Figure 20 shows the percentage of funding allocated through pupil-led factors since 2013 to 2014. Note that the y-axis runs from 89% to 91.5%.
[1]The Isles of Scilly has only a single school and City of London has no secondary schools and do not formally receive DSG schools block funding in the same way as the other local authorities, so the 80% requirement, which is set out in the DSG conditions of grant, does not apply to them.
Figure 20: national level percentage of funding allocated through pupil-led factors
| Year | Percentage |
|---|---|
| 2013 to 2014 | 89.5% |
| 2014 to 2015 | 89.6% |
| 2015 to 2016 | 89.7% |
| 2016 to 2017 | 89.8% |
| 2017 to 2018 | 89.6% |
| 2018 to 2019 | 90.6% |
| 2019 to 2020 | 90.5% |
| 2020 to 2021 | 90.4% |
| 2021 to 2022 | 90.9% |
| 2022 to 2023 | 91.2% |
12. Lump sum
In the 2022 to 2023 formulae, local authorities can use this factor to allocate a lump sum of the same amount to all schools, up to a maximum of £175,000. Separate lump sums can be specified for primary schools and secondary schools. All-through schools receive the lump sum specified for secondary schools. Middle schools receive a weighted combination of the two, based on the number of year groups of each phase present at the school. For a school which amalgamated during the 2021 to 2022 financial year, local authorities must allocate it additional lump sum funding, so that it receives 85% of the combined lump sums that its predecessors would have received under the 2022 to 2023 formula.
Figure 21: primary lump sum - amounts chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 0 | 0 |
| Up to £100k | 2 | 3 |
| £100k to £110k | 2 | 0 |
| £110k to £120k | 1 | 95 |
| £120k to £130k | 109 | 27 |
| £130k to £140k | 21 | 14 |
| £140k to £150k | 7 | 2 |
| £150k to £160k | 2 | 2 |
| £160k to £170k | 1 | 2 |
| Over £170k | 7 | 7 |
Figure 22: secondary lump sum - amounts chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 2 | 2 |
| Up to £100k | 2 | 3 |
| £100k to £110k | 2 | 0 |
| £110k to £120k | 1 | 98 |
| £120k to £130k | 109 | 24 |
| £130k to £140k | 20 | 13 |
| £140k to £150k | 6 | 1 |
| £150k to £160k | 2 | 2 |
| £160k to £170k | 0 | 1 |
| Over £170k | 8 | 8 |
Although the lump sum is an optional factor, like last year all local authorities have chosen to include it in their 2022 to 2023 funding formulae[1].
There has been a continued shift in the distribution of the lump sum values used, with more local authorities choosing to use the NFF amount of £121,300 or a value close to it. However, there is still substantial variation in the value of the lump sums selected for both primary and secondary schools. The maximum value of £175,000 was chosen by 5 local authorities for their primary lump sum amount and 6 for their secondary lump sum (this compares with 6 selecting the maximum primary lump sum and 7 the maximum secondary lump sum in 2021 to 2022). The NFF rate of £121,300 has been used by 69 local authorities for primary schools and 72 local authorities for secondary schools compared with 61 for primary and 64 for secondary in 2021 to 2022 using the NFF rate of £117,800.
There are 110 local authorities mirroring the NFF on the lump sum.
There are 144 local authorities that have selected equal primary and secondary lump sum amounts, which is the approach taken in the NFF. 4 have selected a greater secondary lump sum than primary; and a further 4 have selected a greater primary lump sum than secondary.
Note that in figures 21 and 22, the lump sum choices of exactly a multiple of £10,000 are shown in the category for which that is the top of the band. For example, the 2 local authorities with a primary lump sum of £140,000 are included in the ‘£130k to £140k’ category.
Overall, local authorities are allocating roughly the same proportion of their schools block funding through the lump sum factor compared to last year: 6.4%. The NFF also allocates 6.4% of funding through the lump sum in 2022 to 2023.
8 City of London and Haringey are the local authorities represented by the ‘Not chosen’ bar for 2021 to 2022 and 2022 to 2023 secondary lump sum amounts.
Figure 23: percentage of funding allocated through the lump sum
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0 | 0 |
| 0% to 2% | 0 | 0 |
| 2% to 4% | 8 | 6 |
| 4% to 6% | 73 | 74 |
| 6% to 8% | 52 | 53 |
| 8% to 10% | 17 | 17 |
| 10% to 12% | 2 | 2 |
| Above 12% | 0 | 0 |
13. Sparsity
Whether a school is deemed to be sparse depends on 2 considerations: its sparsity distance and the average number of pupils per year group.
A school’s sparsity distance is derived from those pupils for whom it is their closest school (irrespective of whether they attend it). For all those pupils, the average distance to their second nearest school is calculated. For 2022 to 2023 road distances are used. These were calculated using the postcode of each pupil and their second closest school they are eligible to attend, as determined by road distances. For 2021 to 2022 and earlier straight line distances were used.
The sparsity factor may be applied to schools where the average distance to pupils’ second nearest school is at least 2 miles (for primary schools, middle schools and all through schools) or 3 miles (for secondary schools). Schools must also have an average number of pupils per year group no larger than:
- 21.4 pupils for primary schools
- 120 pupils for secondary schools
- 69.2 pupils for middle schools
- 62.5 pupils for all-through schools
Local authorities can narrow the eligibility criteria for the factor, by increasing the average distance to the second nearest school and/or reducing the average pupil number maximum thresholds, but they cannot widen the eligibility criteria.
Local authorities can set different sparsity lump sum amounts for each of these 4 phases of school, up to a maximum of £100,000 per school. They can also choose in each case whether to apply a ‘taper’ so that the funding given to a sparse school depends on how many pupils they have (so that the smaller schools receive higher sparsity funding) or that all sparse schools receive the same specified sparsity lump sum. Local authorities are also allowed to apply to use the rules set out in the Schools block national funding formula: technical note. Where the school has more pupils than half of the year group threshold a weighting is applied to the lump sum amount meaning affected schools only receive a portion of the lump sum.
From 2022 to 2023 an optional distance taper was introduced which entitles those schools up to 20% below the distance threshold to a reduced sparsity lump sum if they also meet the pupil number threshold. The amount they are entitled to is tapered based on the difference between their actual sparsity distance and their distance threshold. For example, a secondary school with a sparsity distance of 2.7 miles would be entitled to 50% of the sparsity lump sum.
Additional sparsity funding of £50,000 can also be allocated to very small, sparse secondary schools.
Figure 24: primary sparsity lump sum - amounts chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 76 | 87 |
| Up to £10k | 3 | 1 |
| £10k to £20k | 0 | 0 |
| £20k to £30k | 2 | 5 |
| £30k to £40k | 0 | 1 |
| £40k to £50k | 4 | 56 |
| £50k to £60k | 64 | 1 |
| £60k to £70k | 2 | 0 |
| £70k to £80k | 0 | 0 |
| £80k to £90k | 0 | 0 |
| £90k to £100k | 1 | 1 |
Figure 25: secondary sparsity lump sum - amounts chosen
| Per-pupil amounts | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Not chosen | 77 | 86 |
| Up to £10k | 0 | 0 |
| £10k to £20k | 0 | 0 |
| £20k to £30k | 1 | 0 |
| £30k to £40k | 0 | 2 |
| £40k to £50k | 2 | 2 |
| £50k to £60k | 0 | 0 |
| £60k to £70k | 3 | 39 |
| £70k to £80k | 48 | 20 |
| £80k to £90k | 19 | 1 |
| £90k to £100k | 2 | 2 |
In 2022 to 2023, 76 local authorities are using the sparsity factor compared with 66 in 2021 to 2022. This includes 11 local authorities which have no eligible schools so do not actually allocate any funding through the factor.
Of the 81 local authorities that attract sparsity funding through the NFF, 65 have used the factor in their local funding formulae and 52 are mirroring the NFF values. The increase in local authorities using this factor reflects the number using the NFF rates. Many of those local authorities not using the factor do not have any schools meeting the maximum permissible average year group size or minimum permissible distance thresholds for eligibility for funding through the factor, so do not have any sparse schools.
Of those that are using the factor the proportion of their schools block funding which they are allocating through this factor ranged from 0.003% to 1.87%. Across all local authorities, 0.22% of funding has been allocated through this factor, an increase on the 0.1% of funding in the 2021 to 2022 formulae.
Figure 26: percentage of funding allocated through the sparsity lump sum
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 87 | 99 |
| 0% to 0.1% | 20 | 19 |
| 0.1% to 0.2% | 6 | 17 |
| 0.2% to 0.3% | 10 | 2 |
| 0.3% to 0.4% | 6 | 3 |
| 0.4% to 0.5% | 4 | 2 |
| 0.5% to 0.6% | 3 | 2 |
| 0.6% to 0.7% | 0 | 1 |
| 0.7% to 0.8% | 3 | 1 |
| 0.8% to 0.9% | 1 | 1 |
| 0.9% to 1% | 4 | 1 |
| Above 1% | 8 | 4 |
14. Minimum per-pupil funding levels (MPPL)
The NFF provides local authorities with a guaranteed minimum per-pupil funding of £4,265 for primary pupils, £5,321 for KS3 pupils, £5,831 for KS4 pupils (which amounts to £5,525 for secondary pupils in schools with pupils in all 5 secondary year groups) in 2022 to 2023, based on the school’s total core funding.
In 2022 to 2023, local authorities must use this factor to set a guaranteed MPPL. The per-pupil values are also mandatory.
Figure 27: percentage of funding allocated through the MPPL
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 24 | 23 |
| 0% to 0.25% | 17 | 15 |
| 0.25% to 0.5% | 20 | 15 |
| 0.5% to 0.75% | 21 | 19 |
| 0.75% to 1% | 19 | 9 |
| 1% to 1.25% | 14 | 18 |
| 1.25% to 1.5% | 5 | 12 |
| 1.5% to 1.75% | 13 | 10 |
| 1.75% to 2% | 5 | 7 |
| 2% to 2.25% | 5 | 9 |
| 2.25% to 2.5% | 5 | 2 |
| 2.5% to 2.75% | 1 | 3 |
| 2.75% to 3% | 2 | 4 |
| Above 3% | 1 | 6 |
Although every local authority is required to use the factor, only 128 actually allocated funding through it. This is because all schools in the other 24 local authorities were already receiving over the minimum level through the other funding factors. Overall, 51 local authorities allocated more than 1% of their funding through the MPPL factor.
15. Other formula factors
Information for each local authority on the formula factors not discussed in this note (London fringe, split sites, rates, private finance initiative (PFI) funding, and exceptional circumstances) can be found in the accompanying datafile.
16. Primary:secondary funding ratios
Local authorities’ 2022 to 2023 schools block funding formulae have been used to calculate the relative differences in per-pupil funding allocated to secondary pupils compared to primary pupils. A ratio of 1:1.24, for instance, indicates that secondary age pupils in a local authority receive, on average, 24% more funding per head than primary age pupils.
With the exception of the City of London, which has a single maintained primary school (and no secondary pupils), the ratios of secondary to primary per-pupil funding under 2022 to 2023 formulae are shown in figure 28.
Figure 28: primary:secondary ratios
| 1:x | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1.15 | 0 | 0 |
| 1.15 to 1.2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1.2 to 1.25 | 1 | 0 |
| 1.25 to 1.3 | 0 | 2 |
| 1.3 to 1.35 | 2 | 2 |
| 1.35 to 1.4 | 0 | 0 |
| 1.4 to 1.45 | 3 | 39 |
| 1.45 to 1.5 | 48 | 20 |
| Above 1.5 | 2 | 2 |
The overall ratio nationally across all local authorities is 1:1.293, a slight decrease from the 2021 to 2022 formulae where it was 1:1.296. For 21 local authorities, their ratio in 2022 to 2023 has decreased by more than 0.01 compared with last year, while for 7 local authorities, their ratio has increased by more than 0.01. For the remaining 123 local authorities, their ratio changed by less than 0.01 either way.
These ratios have been calculated for each local authority from the information they submitted to ESFA as follows:
- The funding for primary pupils and funding for secondary pupils is split. For the factors with separate primary and secondary indicators (for example, basic entitlement and deprivation), this split is simply the amount of funding allocated through each type of indicator. For the other factors, the amount of funding allocated to each school in the local authority area is split between primary and secondary in proportion to the number of pupils in each phase at the school.
- These amounts are aggregated to estimate the total funding for primary pupils and the total funding for secondary pupils.
- These amounts are then divided, respectively, by the number of primary schools block-funded pupils on roll, and the number of secondary schools block-funded pupils on roll.
- This gives per-pupil funding amounts for primary and secondary phases, and the ratio of the two is taken.
This calculation excludes the effects on schools’ funding of applying the MFG and excludes any capping or scaling factors applied by local authorities. This ensures that the total funding allocated through their formulae is affordable within the total DSG schools block they have been allocated for financial year 2022 to 2023. For academies, the calculation is based on the amount of schools block funding they would receive in 2022 to 2023 if they were a maintained school.
17. Minimum funding guarantee (MFG)
The MFG protects the per-pupil funding of schools from one year to the next. For 2022 to 2023 local authorities can set a rate between 0.5% and 2%, the same as in 2021 to 2022. This change allows local authorities to mirror the 2% funding floor protection included in the NFF which 96 local authorities chose to do in 2022 to 2023.
All local authorities are required to set a positive MFG threshold, meaning that schools will see an increase in their per-pupil level of funding in 2022 to 2023. Figure 29 shows that 125, or 82%, of local authorities have chosen an MFG threshold of 1% or higher. It also shows that 96 (or 63%) have selected a threshold of 2% mirroring the funding floor protection.
Figure 29: MFG threshold values chosen
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0.5% to 1% | 27 | 33 |
| 1% to 1.5% | 15 | 11 |
| 1.5% to 2% | 14 | 19 |
| 2% or above | 96 | 88 |
18. Notional special educational needs (SEN)
Funding for notional SEN is not a separate formula factor. In their funding formulae for 2022 to 2023, local authorities specify what percentage of funding allocated through each factor contributes to schools notional SEN budget.
Figure 30 shows how, at overall local authority level, the notional SEN budget in 2022 to 2023 varies as a percentage of the total schools block formula allocation (before the application of MFG, capping and scaling). Some 119 (78%) local authorities are allocating between 5% and 15% of schools block funding as notional SEN.
The overall percentage of formula allocation which is designated as the notional SEN budget across all local authorities is 11.3%, a slight increase from 11.14% in 2021 to 2022. The median notional SEN allocation is 10.8%. However, as figure 31 shows, like last year there is a wide variation across local authorities
Figure 30: percentage of funding allocated to notional SEN
| Percentage | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0 | 0 |
| 0% to 5% | 9 | 7 |
| 5% to 7.5% | 22 | 23 |
| 7.5% to 10% | 35 | 39 |
| 10% to 12.5% | 38 | 36 |
| 12.5% to 15% | 24 | 28 |
| 15% to 17.5% | 16 | 13 |
| 17.5% to 20% | 5 | 3 |
| Above 20% | 3 | 3 |
Figure 31 shows the number of local authorities for which each factor is being used to determine schools’ notional SEN budgets. In the 2022 to 2023 formulae, deprivation is the factor most commonly contributing to notional SEN with all 152 local authorities using it.
The majority of local authorities are also assigning a percentage of their basic entitlement and prior attainment funding into notional SEN. For the formula factors not displayed on the chart (such as split sites) only a few local authorities are using these for notional SEN. Full details on the use of factors to calculate notional SEN in 2022 to 2023 can be found in the accompanying datafile.
Overall, the pattern of factors used to calculate notional SEN is similar to 2021 to 2022.
Figure 31: formula factors used to allocate notional SEN
| Factor | 2022 to 2023 | 2021 to 2022 |
|---|---|---|
| Basic entitlement | 138 | 135 |
| Deprivation | 152 | 152 |
| English as an additional language | 100 | 103 |
| Looked-after children | 9 | 8 |
| Prior attainment | 148 | 149 |
| Mobility | 96 | 97 |
| Lump sum | 95 | 100 |
| Sparsity | 3 | 7 |
| MPPF | 14 | 0 |
| MFG | 10 | 0 |
19. Growth fund
Subject to the approval of their schools forum, local authorities are able to retain some of their schools block funding centrally (that is, rather than allocate it to their individual schools) for a growth fund. This can only be used:
- for the purposes of supporting growth in pre-16 pupil numbers to meet basic need pressures
- to support additional classes needed to meet the infant class size regulation
- to meet the costs of new schools
Local authorities must use the fund on the same basis for the benefit of both maintained schools and academies in their area.
Some 133 of the 152 local authorities are retaining a growth fund in 2022 to 2023, compared with 136 in 2021 to 2022. The total value of these growth funds is £145.7 million compared with £157.2 million in 2020 to 2021. Growth fund amounts for individual local authorities range from £29,942 to £8.9 million. It is worth noting that local authorities may also be spending on growth by adding pupil numbers.
20. Falling rolls fund
Local authorities were also able to retain funding centrally to support schools currently experiencing falling rolls to prepare for an expected future population bulge, again subject to the approval of their schools forum. The falling rolls fund should be restricted to population increases expected in 2 to 3 years in necessary schools which are classed by Ofsted as good or outstanding. The fund cannot be used by local authorities to prop up unpopular or failing schools.
Only 23 local authorities are retaining a falling rolls fund in their 2022 to 2023 formulae, with a total value of £10.1 million compared to 23 local authorities allocating £9.1 million in 2021 to 2022. Falling rolls fund amounts for individual local authorities range from £25,000 to £1.5 million.
21. Information about the datafile spreadsheet
Alongside this document, we have published a detailed datafile in Microsoft Excel format showing the 2022 to 2023 funding formula used by each local authority, as they stood at 12 April 2022.
22. ‘Proforma’ tab
This shows the full data for a selected local authority. Go to the purple cell near the top of the page next to the ‘LA Name’ label, then select a new local authority from the dropdown menu.
23. ‘Final MI data 2023’ tab
This gives the proforma data values for each local authority in a large table, using these column headings.
24. MPPL
The amounts of the guaranteed MPPL for primary, KS3, KS4 and secondary pupils.
25. Reception uplift
Which local authorities have opted to increase the count of primary pupils to which the basic entitlement primary indicator applies, to include pupils with deferred entry into reception later in the year. The other column in this section shows the number of pupils this applies to.
26. Basic entitlement
This section shows:
- the per-pupil funding amounts local authorities have chosen for the primary and secondary indicators in their 2022 to 2023 formulae
- the number of pupils in mainstream maintained schools and academies in the local authority as a whole, to which each indicator applies
- the total amount of schools block funding allocated to maintained schools and academies through each factor
- the proportion of schools block funding allocated through each factor
- the proportion of the factor’s funding which contributes towards notional SEN budgets
27. Deprivation, looked-after children, prior attainment, EAL, mobility
These sections also show the per-pupil amounts chosen, the number of pupils, the total/proportion of funding allocated to schools through each factor, and contribution to notional SEN budgets.
For the indicators where local authorities had a choice as to which specific measure to use for their formulae, columns indicate the selection. Explanations for the entries in these columns are given below. For each, the entry ‘N/A’ means that a local authority has chosen not to use a particular factor or indicator.
EAL – Primary (1/2/3/NA), Secondary (1/2/3/NA):
- EAL 1 Primary/EAL 1 Secondary: indicator used is the number of pupils with EAL who entered the compulsory school system in the last year
- EAL 2 Primary/EAL 2 Secondary: indicator used is the number of pupils with EAL who entered the compulsory school system in either of the last 2 years
- EAL 3 Primary/EAL 3 Secondary: indicator used is the number of pupils with EAL who entered the compulsory school system in any of the last 3 years
28. Lump sum
Lump sum funding is shown in 2 places in the datafile:
- in the group of columns called ‘lump sum’ (most funding through the lump sum factor is shown here)
- in the ‘Exceptional circumstances’ section, in columns 2 to 5 (all of which have a column title ‘Additional lump sum’)
The data in ‘Exceptional circumstances’ relates specifically to additional lump sum funding which local authorities are allocating to schools which amalgamated during the 2021 to 2022 financial year. As explained previously, local authorities must allocate such schools additional lump sum funding, so that they receive 85% of the combined lump sums of their predecessors. Local authorities could also apply to continue protection for schools which amalgamated during the 2020 to 2021 financial year.
The data is presented in this way because local authorities recorded any additional lump sum funding for previous year amalgamations in a different section of their formula submission. Therefore, the total amount of funding that each local authority is allocating through the lump sum factor is obtained by summing the values in the ‘Lump Sum total’ and ‘Additional lump sum total’ columns. Similarly, the proportion allocated through the lump sum factor is obtained by summing the values in the ‘Lump Sum proportion’ and ‘Additional lump sum proportion’ columns.
29. Sparsity
Sparsity funding is also shown in 2 places in the datafile:
- in the group of columns called ‘Sparsity’ (most funding through the sparsity factor is shown here).
- in the ‘Exceptional circumstances’ section, in the group of 3 columns (headed ‘Additional sparsity lump sum’)—the data here relates specifically to additional sparsity funding which local authorities are allocating to very small, sparse secondary schools.
30. (London) fringe payments, split sites, rates, PFI funding, sixth form, exceptional circumstances
These sections of the datafile show the total funding and proportions of funding allocated to schools through each factor.
31. Schools block
The ‘Total Funding Schools Block Formula Excl MFG Funding Total (£)’ column gives the total amount of money allocated to mainstream maintained schools and academies in 2022 to 2023 under local authorities’ basic funding formulae. This section also includes any additional funding allocated through the guaranteed minimum per-pupil level of funding.
32. MFG
The MFG protects the per-pupil funding of schools from one year to the next and, for 2022 to 2023, local authorities can choose to set a rate between 0.5% and 2%. The column ‘Minimum Funding Guarantee (£)’ is the total funding local authorities are allocating to their schools, over and above the amounts derived through their basic formula, to ensure this condition is met.
In addition, local authorities are allowed to set capping and scaling factors to ensure that the amount of funding allocated through their formula (and including any additional funding to ensure the MFG is met) fits within the total DSG schools block available to them. Any change in the per-pupil funding amount in 2022 to 2023 compared with 2021 to 2022 for an individual school can be capped at a level specified by the local authority: these caps are given in the column ‘Capping Factor’. Any school which sees its per-pupil funding increase by more than the level of the cap will see any additional increase scaled back, to some extent. For example, in this column a 0% cap means that the local authority will start scaling back any increase in per-pupil funding. A capping factor of 2% means that any rise in per-pupil funding of more than 2% will be scaled back.
The column ‘Scaling Factor’ indicates the amounts by which schools’ increases in per-pupil funding over the level of the cap will be reduced. So, for example, a 100% scaling factor means that all increases in per-pupil funding above the level of the cap will be removed - in other words, the cap is a strict limit on the increase in per-pupil funding in 2022 to 2023 compared to 2021 to 2022. Similarly, a 50% scaling factor means that schools will lose half of any per-pupil funding increase above the level of the cap. Local authorities showing 0% values in both the ‘Capping Factor’ column and the ‘Scaling Factor’ column are not restricting per-pupil increases in order to stay within their available funding.
The ‘Total deduction if capping and scaling factors are applied (£)’ column shows the total amounts that have been taken off school budgets due to the application of the capping and scaling factors. Clearly, any school requiring additional funding in addition to that specified by a local authority’s basic formula in order to meet the MFG will not also be subject to capping and scaling reductions. Any entry of 0 in this column means that capping and scaling has not led to any deductions in funding compared to the basic formula for any schools in the local authority area.
33. Totals
The ‘Total Funding for Schools Block Formula (£)’ column shows the total schools block funding allocated to mainstream maintained schools and academies in each local authority under their 2022 to 2023 formulae, after additions for MFG funding and deductions from capping and scaling. The total funding figure is higher than the total schools block formula funding plus the net MFG total as it also includes any adjustments made to schools 2021 to 2022 budgets in 2022 to 2023 not included in this publication.
Note that the totals will not exactly match the total DSG schools block funding for 2022 to 2023 that has been allocated to each local authority. This is for a number of reasons. The funding formulae specify the funding allocated to individual schools, and so exclude local authority level allocations such as the growth fund and falling rolls fund, which are shown in the correspondingly named columns.
In addition to this in some cases local authorities can move funding to the high needs block and the funding formulae will reflect any brought forward over and underspends, and local authorities supplementing DSG from other funding sources.
For the other columns in this section:
- ‘% Distributed through Basic Entitlement’ – the proportion of schools block funding being allocated through the basic entitlement factor in each local authority, prior to MFG and capping and scaling
- ‘% Pupil Led Funding’ – the proportion of schools block funding being allocated through the pupil-led factors (for example, basic entitlement, deprivation, looked-after children, prior attainment, English as an additional language, and mobility), prior to MFG and capping and scaling
- ‘Primary/Secondary Ratio’ – the local authority’s primary:secondary funding ratio; a figure of 1.24, for example, denotes a ratio of 1:1.24, meaning that secondary age pupils in a local authority receive, on average, 24% more funding per head than primary age pupils