Forty-Seventh Report - Academies Sector Annual Report and Accounts 2019/20

The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation and says the national funding formula distributes funding fairly and it has an effective assurance programme for academy trusts.

The government disagrees with the recommendation and will not collect and publish data on pupils' access to learning facilities. The department prioritizes ensuring sufficient school places and that the estate remains in a safe, operational condition.

The government response does not address the recommendation about asbestos in schools. It provides an unrelated comment about waiting times for elective and cancer treatment.

The government agrees with the recommendation to set out the criteria it uses to determine whether it is appropriate to provide additional funding to academy trusts to support financial recovery, or to write-off an academy’s debt and states that this framework is already in place.

The government will make regulations under section 19(7)(c) of the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent trust leaders judged to be unfit from moving to elsewhere in the education system and will write to the Committee by September 2022 with a full response.

Acknowledges the committee's introduction regarding the Academy Sector Annual Report and Accounts, academy trusts, and their responsibilities and funding.

The department is working with Falcon Education Academies Trust and St Joseph’s Catholic MAT to pilot a new approach for schools that cannot be placed with a strong MAT sponsor and Regional Directors will engage local partners to determine the best way to develop a strong trust landscape.

The government agrees with the recommendation (quoted in its response) for a clear plan for full academisation. It confirms the Schools White Paper provides the basis for this, committing to set out further detailed plans after sector engagement, piloting new approaches for harder-to-place schools, and investing £86 million to build trust capacity in Education Investment Areas.

The government agrees with the implicit recommendation on multi-academy trust (MAT) strategy, outlining plans from the Schools White Paper to achieve a fully trust-led system by 2030. This includes new regulatory approaches, defining strong trusts, and investing £86 million to build trust capacity in Education Investment Areas.

The government agrees with the implicit recommendation on MAT structure and growth, detailing plans from the Schools White Paper to achieve a fully trust-led system by 2030. This involves growing strong trusts, a new regulatory review, and investment to develop a strong trust landscape.

The government explicitly disagrees with the implied recommendation regarding large academy trust reserves and current reporting. It states it cannot introduce new analysis into the current SARA but commits to undertaking research into financial pressures for inclusion in the 2022-23 SARA.

The government explicitly disagrees with the recommendation (quoted in its response) to systematically investigate and disclose reasons for variation in the financial health of academies. It states it cannot add significant analysis to the current SARA but commits to undertaking research into financial pressures for inclusion in the 2022-23 SARA.

The government explicitly disagrees with the committee's implicit recommendation, defending the national funding formula and reiterating that financial management is the primary responsibility of academy trusts. It notes that the 2021-22 SARA is finalised but commits to undertaking research into the impact of financial pressures on schools, with outcomes to be included in the 2022-23 SARA.

The government explicitly disagrees with the implied recommendation regarding academy trusts holding significant reserves and the committee's request for action details. It maintains that primary financial management responsibility rests with trusts and defends its existing assurance programme, but commits to undertaking research on financial pressures for the 2022-23 SARA.

The government states it agrees with and has implemented the explicit PAC recommendation 5 to set out criteria for providing additional funding to academy trusts in difficulty. A transparent framework detailing eligibility criteria and conditions for financial support was published in November 2019, with annual data published alongside reports.

The government agrees with the implicit recommendation to address concerns about excessive salaries. It commits to new regulations under the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent unsuitable trust leaders from moving, will launch a regulatory review in May 2022, and will provide a full response by September 2022.

The government agrees with the implicit recommendation to address increasing levels of higher pay. It commits to new regulations under the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent unsuitable trust leaders from moving, will launch a regulatory review in May 2022, and will provide a full response by September 2022.

The government response addresses a different PAC recommendation (PAC recommendation 3) regarding collecting and publishing data on pupil access to learning facilities, which it explicitly disagrees with. It describes existing efforts on estate data collection, but does not directly engage with the provided conclusion #18's observations on estate valuation and repair costs.

The government explicitly disagrees with the recommendation (quoted in its response) to collect and publish data on pupils' access to and condition of learning facilities. It states it prioritizes ensuring sufficient school places and a safe, operational estate, and is rolling out Net Capacity Assessments for teaching space, but not the specific amenity data requested.

The government agrees with the explicit PAC recommendation 4 to urgently chase the remaining non-responders to the asbestos management survey. It has shared details with regional teams and the HSE, and will provide a progress update to the Committee by September 2022, with comprehensive data available from the CDC2 program.

The government agrees with the recommendation (quoted in its response) to address asbestos concerns, stating it has shared details of non-responding schools with regional teams and the HSE. It is gathering updated asbestos compliance data through the Condition Data Collection 2 programme and commits to providing a progress update to the Committee by September 2022.

The government explicitly disagrees with the recommendation to publish annual details of per-pupil allocation for each academy school. It explains that the 2021-22 SARA is already being finalised and that existing assurance programmes for academy trusts are effective, while committing to undertake research into financial pressures for the 2022-23 SARA.

The government states that the primary responsibility for financial management rests with the academy trust and accountability is rigorous via audited accounts.

The government's response focuses on asbestos management and condition data collection, which is unrelated to the committee's conclusion about the Whole of Government Accounts and academy year-end reporting.

The government states it has already addressed the historic qualified opinion on the Whole of Government Accounts regarding land and building valuations. It has introduced its own programme of revaluations using qualified surveyors to ensure accuracy.

The government states that the primary responsibility for financial management rests with the academy trust and accountability is rigorous via audited accounts.

The government states that academy trusts are responsible for managing finances, and the ESFA provides support and challenge; additional funding is a last resort and is expected to be repaid with frameworks for financial support already in place.

The government states that academy trusts are responsible for managing finances, and the ESFA provides support and challenge; additional funding is a last resort and is expected to be repaid with frameworks for financial support already in place.

The government states that the primary responsibility for financial management rests with the academy trust and accountability is rigorous via audited accounts.

The government states that the primary responsibility for financial management rests with the academy trust and accountability is rigorous via audited accounts.

The government will make regulations under section 19(7)(c) of the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent trust leaders judged to be unfit from moving to elsewhere in the education system and will write to the Committee by September 2022 with a full response.

The government will make regulations under section 19(7)(c) of the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent trust leaders judged to be unfit from moving to elsewhere in the education system and will write to the Committee by September 2022 with a full response.

The government will make regulations under section 19(7)(c) of the Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 to prevent trust leaders judged to be unfit from moving to elsewhere in the education system and will write to the Committee by September 2022 with a full response.