Schools in England continue to face a number of challenges when it comes to funding, despite significant increases in recent years. Rising energy prices, inflation, growing calls on the high needs budget, and increasing staff costs have already squeezed school budgets across the country.
Over the coming years, the system is also going to have to manage the issue of falling rolls.
Pupil numbers are approaching their peak and are estimated to fall to similar levels to those seen before the post-millennium ‘baby boom’ by 2032. With school funding so closely tied to pupil numbers, fewer pupils mean smaller school budgets, but school costs don’t necessarily fall in the same way.
These challenges are multi-faceted and are already affecting schools in different ways based on their demographics, location, and historic funding arrangements. The fall in pupil numbers has already begun amongst the primary aged population. As pupil numbers fall and these financial pressures build many – particularly smaller – schools, academy trusts, and local authorities will be forced to take difficult decisions, such as cost-cutting, amalgamations, and ultimately school closures.
