House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

NAO Report: Financial Sustainability of Schools

Thursday 9 December 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

The Government will respond to the Public Accounts Committee report on school financial sustainability after its publication.
It is possible that the significant financial disparity between academy trusts and maintained secondary schools needs investigation.
Most maintained schools and academy trusts have been in surplus, but some maintained secondary schools face significant pressures.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Philip Hollobone Con

Education

Context

The National Audit Office published a report on November 2021 examining the financial sustainability of schools in England, complementing its July 2021 report on school funding.

Question

What is the planned timescale for the Government's response to the National Audit Office's report 'Financial sustainability of schools in England', published in November 2021?

Answer from Richard Bacon

The Government will respond to the expected Public Accounts Committee report on school financial sustainability after it is published.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide a specific timeline for responding to the National Audit Office's report, only stated they would respond to the Public Accounts Committee's report after publication.

How: Under Review

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Q2 Philip Hollobone Con

Education

Context

The National Audit Office reported that 22% of academy trusts had reserves equivalent to a fifth or more of their annual income, while 27% of maintained secondary schools were in deficit.

Question

Does the significant financial disparity between academy trusts and maintained secondary schools not need investigation?

Answer from Richard Bacon

It is possible that it does. Most maintained schools and academy trusts have been in surplus, but there have been significant pressures on some maintained secondary schools. A sizeable minority of academy trusts are building up substantial reserves, meaning they spend less than their annual income on pupils.