Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help ensure that the National Funding Formula for schools reflects the needs of children in Hampshire.

The National Funding Formula (NFF) distributes funding fairly, based on schools’ and pupils’ needs and characteristics. The NFF includes proxy factors through which pupils with additional needs attract additional funding to their school, such as low prior attainment, socio-economic status, and English as an Additional Language.

Hampshire is attracting an extra £19 million for schools in 2024/25, an increase of 2.0% per pupil (excluding growth funding) through the schools NFF compared to 2023/24, and an increase of 13.3% per pupil compared to 2021/22. This takes total funding for 2024/25 in Hampshire to over £986 million, based on current pupil numbers. Final allocations for 2024/25 will be announced in December 2024.

All schools will receive additional funding, beyond that provided through the NFF, through the Teachers Pay Additional Grant (TPAG) in the 2024/25 financial year. A typical primary school with 200 pupils might be receiving around £20,000 through the TPAG in 2024/25, and a typical secondary school with 900 pupils might be receiving around £100,000.