School funding 'needs to change'

NUT Cymru wants a shake-up of the funding formula for schools in Wales

A teaching union says the way Wales' 22 councils allocate assembly government money to schools is "defective".

NUT Cymru said a new system should be found to reduce the differences in education budgets across the country.

The Welsh Local Government Association said differences were for "legitimate" reasons but agreed pupils in Wales were funded £496 each less than in England.

An assembly government spokesman said the report would "inform how we build on arrangements for school funding".

The union commissioned research into how education budgets fare in each of Wales' 22 local authorities.

Currently, the Welsh Assembly Government distributes money to the councils, which then decide how to spend it.

Education consultant John Atkin's report says that leads to big differences in how much money schools in different areas receive.

We can ensure that virtually all the money allocated originally for education in Wales will actually be spent on that provision Report author, John Atkin

He said he found that while Wales spends more than 8% per head of population on public services than England, the education service receives 1% less.

Local education authorities in Wales spend on average 9.5% less per pupil than those in England.

The report says an alternative system should be sought, with "direct costs" such as teachers, academic management and learning materials funded nationally.

It said "indirect costs", such as premises and administrative support, could then be funded by the local authority.

Mr Akin said: "By doing so we can ensure that virtually all the money allocated originally for education in Wales will actually be spent on that provision."

'Spending decisions'

NUT Welsh Secretary, David Evans, said under the existing funding formula, a primary school of 210 children in one education authority could receive £200,000 less than one in a neighbouring authority.

The Welsh Local Government Association disputed the Atkin report's claim that councils were not funding education in line with the levels of funding received from the assembly government.

It said that in recent years Welsh councils had spent over the amount allocated by the Welsh Assembly Government and have prioritised education in local spending plans.

A spokesperson said it was "essential that local authorities are free to make policy and spending decisions based on local circumstance and priorities".

NUT members are gathering in Cardiff for their annual conference which begins on Saturday.