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Subject: |
EDUCATION BASIC NEED – ALLOCATION £15MILLION PREVIOUSLY EARMARKED FOR PURCHASE OF A SISTE FOR A NEW FREE SCHOOL extract from the proceedings of the Children, Young People & Skills Urgency Sub-Committee meeting held on the 30th April 2018 |
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Date of Meeting: |
14 June 2018 |
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Report of: |
Executive Lead Officer for Strategy, Governance & Law |
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Contact Officer: |
Name: |
Lisa Johnson |
Tel: |
01273 291228 |
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E-mail: |
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Wards Affected: |
All |
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For general release
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Action Required of the Committee: To receive the item referred from the Children, Young People & Skills Urgency Sub-Committee for approval:
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Recommendation:
(1) That the agreed allocation of the final School Condition Allocation and the Healthy Pupil Capital Allocation as detailed in paragraphs 3.17 to 3.22 of the report (detailed below); be included within the Council’s Capital Investment Programme 2018/19; and
(2) That delegated authority be granted to the Assistant Director of Property & Design to procure the works and enter into contracts within these budgets, as required, in accordance with Contract Standing Orders in respect of the entire Educational Capital Programme.
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Extract from the report on Education Basic Need – Allocation £15million Previously Earmarked for Purchase of a Site for a New Free School: School Condition Funding
3.17 Since the preparation of the original report to CYPS the Department for Education has finalised the School Condition Allocations for all Local Authorities. This funding is allocated on a formulaic basis and therefore changes in pupil numbers can have an impact on the final amounts. We were anticipating approximately £4.815 million however we received £5.008 million, an increase of £192,682. This additional funding will be used to address the next most urgent priorities within the school estate.
Healthy Pupils Capital Funding
3.18 In addition to this we have also been advised of a one off capital allocation for 2018/19 only. The government has made available capital funding generated from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. The funding (the Healthy Pupil Capital Fund) is intended to improve children and young people’s mental and physical health by improving and increasing availability to facilities for physical activity, healthy eating, mental health and wellbeing and medical conditions. This funding is available to support children of all ages.
3.19 We have been allocated £305,658 under this funding stream. Guidance on its use has been published and can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/686163/Healthy_pupils_capital_fund_guidance.pdf It is intended to use this funding to undertake refurbishment of the ventilation system to Surrenden Pool which supports school swimming for 12 primary and secondary schools in the city.
3.20 Any residual funding will be used to support other school play space refurbishments.
Services to Schools Buy Back Option
3.21 In the March reports it was detailed that the Services to Schools buy back option for the strategic property function was anticipated to raise £475,000 for the 2018/19 financial year. We are anticipating that the majority of schools will purchase this service and the income is now anticipated to be in the order of £550,000. As reported at the last CYP&S committee the additional funding will be used to ensure more works are carried out.
3.22 The additional funding ensures that the city can continue to maintain its education estate to a high standard and mitigates the risk of unanticipated and significant structural faults. At a time of significant pressure on school revenue budgets and following a number of years of reduced capital allocations this supports schools and will avoid greater deterioration as a result of short term funding decisions.
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Note:
In addition the Urgency Sub-Committee agreed the recommendations set out in paragraph 4.9 of the minutes below and that following further work to identify longer term capital need a report will come to the PR&G committee later in the financial year.
Brighton & Hove City Council
Children, Young People & Skills Urgency Sub-Committee
5.00pm30 April 2018
Hove Town Hall
MINUTES
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Present: Councillors Chapman (Chair), Brown and Phillips
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PART ONE
3 Procedural Business
3(a) Declarations of substitutes
3.1 There were none.
3(b) Declarations of interest
3.2 There were none.
3(c) Exclusion of press and public
3.3 In accordance with section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972 (“the Act”), the Committee considered whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during an item of business on the grounds that it was likely, in view of the business to be transacted or the nature of proceedings, that if members of the press and public were present during that item, there would be disclosure to them of confidential information (as defined in section 100A(3) of the Act) or exempt information (as defined in section 100(I) of the Act).
3.4 RESOLVED- That the press and public not be excluded
4 Education Basic Need - Allocation £15million previously earmarked for purchase of a site for a new Free School
4.1 The Managing Principle Lawyer, outlined the basis for the convening the urgency sub-committee. She noted that the sub-committee was requested to approve recommendations 2.1 to 2.4 which would then be referred to the Policy Resources & Growth Committee in June.
4.2 The Head of School Organisation gave a brief overview of the report brought before the sub-committee and stated the following:
· The timing of the recommendations did not allow significant discussion of the City’s secondary schools;
· Concerns had been raised by Cardinal Newman Catholic School, the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton and 5 of the City’s Chairs of Governors in relation to the lack of clarity and the inequality of the circumstances that resulted in the recommendations;
· The funding would not be for maintenance work or for funding previous expansions rather it was to ensure additional places in future and that as BHCC would not be receiving an additional grant until 2020, a long term view must be taken to finalise any considerations;
· Consideration had been given to which schools would be provided with additional places, which areas are expected to meet rising demand and which schools were operating near their capacity limit;
· This report ultimately provided an indicative allocation basic need capital funding and works to accommodate the “misplaced 38.”
4.2 Councillor Brown stated that she felt the report did not have enough detail. She noted that not all schools had been considered fully and emphasised that it was necessary to consider every school before making any final decisions.
4.3 Councillor Phillips agreed and supported Councillor Brown’s statement.
4.4 Councillor Chapman noted that the report had been produced in a short amount of time and agreed that further detail and consideration of all schools in the City was paramount. He recommended an amendment to recommendation 2.2 to read, “The Committee agree the indicative allocation of the balance of the Government funded £15million on the remainder of the school estate as shown in Paragraphs 3.8 to 3.16 and in addition consider the needs of all other schools in the City and recommend this to the PR&G Committee for inclusion within the council’s Capital Investment Programme 2018/19.”
4.5 Councillor Brown agreed with the amendment on the grounds that enough time was given to prepare a more thorough report.
4.6 The Executive Director for Families Children & Learning stated the following:
· In relation to capital moneys, there was a recommendation that emphasised the urgent need to resolve expansions for the Summer;
· It was suggested that the report be brought to a subsequent PR&G Committee in the autumn to ensure that the report be comprehensive.
4.7 The Chair confirmed the amended recommendation to read, “That Committee agree the indicative allocation of the balance of the Government funded £15million on the remainder of the school estate as shown in Paragraphs 3.8 to 3.16 and in addition consider the needs of all other schools in the City and recommend this to a subsequent PR&G Committee for inclusion within the council’s Capital Investment Programme 2018/19.”
4.8 Natasha Watson confirmed that based on the wording of the amended recommendation; one would anticipate an additional consideration to all other schools in the City and a more thorough report would be brought to a subsequent PR&G Committee.
4.9 RESOLVED:
(1) That the necessary building, adaptation and other associated works at Dorothy Stringer School following the amendment agreed at the Policy, Resources & Growth Committee on 29 March 2018 be approved;
(2) That the indicative allocation of the balance of the Government funded £15million on the remainder of the school estate as shown in Paragraphs 3.8 to 3.16 be greed; and in addition consider the needs of all other schools in the City and recommend this to a subsequent Policy, Resources & Growth Committee for inclusion within the Council’s Capital Investment Programme 2018/19;
(3) That the allocation of the final School Condition Allocation and the Healthy Pupil Capital Allocation as detailed in Paragraphs 3.17 to 3.22 be agreed and recommended to Policy, Resources & Growth Committee for inclusion within the Council’s Capital Investment Programme 2018/19; and
(4) That the Policy, Resources & Growth Committee be recommended to grant delegated authority to the Assistant Director of Property & Design to procure the works and enter into contracts within these budgets, as required, in accordance with Contract Standing Orders in respect of the entire Educational Capital Programme.