1.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: March 2023 1.2 The national funding formula (NFF), introduced in 2018-19, distributes funding to schools fairly, regardless of geographical location. The formula does not discriminate between maintained schools and academies. The formula is updated annually based on schools’ and pupils’ characteristics. 1.3 It is local authorities’ responsibility to supervise maintained schools, and the Department for Education (the department) expects local authorities to closely monitor maintained schools in financial difficulty, taking action as necessary under their local schemes. 1.3 The department annually publishes information on the reserves of maintained schools, based on schools’ Consistent Financial Reporting (CFR) returns, including analysis of reserves in different phases, and a local authority level breakdown. The latest statistics show a smaller proportion of maintained schools in deficit in 2020-21 compared to 2019-20. The percentage of secondary schools in deficit reduced from 27% to 19% in 2020-21. 1.4 The department monitors variations in phases and will collect perspectives on financial health and explanatory factors from local authority-maintained schools in different geographical areas. The department’s School Resource Management programme is available to schools, allowing them to access available tools and support. The expertise of School Resource Management Advisors (SRMAs) can be deployed to help local authorities and their schools identify opportunities to make better use of their funding. The department will continue to engage and support those local authorities, with schools in deficits, to request Action Plans and offer SRMA expertise to understand and provide advice on addressing these deficits.