15
Rejected
We asked why multi-academy trusts had more freedom in how they distributed funding.
Conclusion
We asked why multi-academy trusts had more freedom in how they distributed funding. The Department replied that academy trusts and local authorities had different roles: local authorities were responsible for distributing funding between schools, whereas academy trusts had direct responsibility for the provision of education in the schools that they ran. The Department explained that there were some circumstances, particularly where an academy trust had taken on a challenging school, where the trust might pool funding in order to do things across the academy chain that had benefits for all the schools but might, for a period, help one school more than another.21
Government Response Summary
The government disagreed with an implicit recommendation regarding multi-academy trust funding freedoms, stating it does not collect information on how trusts distribute funding to their schools in this form, and it would not be practicable. It advised using the Schools Financial Benchmarking website for expenditure analysis.
Government Response
Rejected
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
3.1 The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation. 3.2 The department does not collect information from academy trusts in this form and it would not be practicable to collect and publish it for the academic years ending 31 August 2021 or 31 August 2022. The department will keep under review the financial information provided by academy trusts. 3.3 The expenditure of academy schools can be analysed on a per pupil basis using data available on the Schools Financial Benchmarking website. The department believes this is the best information for assessing whether money is being spent appropriately on pupils. The department will continue to review the Schools Financial Benchmarking website to ensure that information is presented transparently and clearly, informed by user feedback.
Source
Committee
Public Accounts Committee
Inquiry
School funding
Report
Twenty-First Report - School Funding
22 Oct 2021
HC 183
Addressee Bodies
HM Treasury
Timeline
Recommendation age
4.8 yrs
Report published
22 Oct 2021