Issue - decisions

Councillor Lucy Smith, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, presented the report which outlined that the Cabinet has previously received a number of reports affirming the Council’s commitment to the delivery of a new secondary school for Radcliffe by the Department for Education, including approval of the revenue and capital financial obligations on the Council. At Cabinet on the 15th March 2023, cabinet received a report that set out the financial arrangements that included a commitment from the Council to underwrite revenue costs in the event that the school did not recruit to its capacity in each of the first two years of operation, to be funded through the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG).

The school is currently planning to admit up to its admission number in September 2024, and there will not be a requirement to underwrite places in the first year. However, an unexpected financial risk has also been identified during the preparation of the complex annual return to the Department for Education which allocates the total Dedicated Schools Grant to fund activities specified in the Regulations.

Members raised concerns regarding the need for the report and the issue being missed originally, however the matter has been learnt from and the team now has the expertise to avoid these issues again.

Decision:

Cabinet:

• Recommended that proposals be brought forward as part of the annual Budget process for 2025-26, or earlier, for the establishment and use of a revenue provision sufficient to meet the Council’s financial commitments to Star Radcliffe

Reasons for recommendation(s):

• Meeting the Council’s commitment to supporting the opening and development of the new secondary school has proven more challenging than was originally envisaged. This is because the General Fund revenue balances and the schools’ block of the DSG have, year - on – year, been subject to sustained financial pressure.

Alternative options considered and rejected:

• This report considers the most cost-effective and expedient measures for meeting the Council’s commitment to supporting the revenue budget for the new Star Radcliffe for its first five years of operation beginning September 2024. Given that the Council made this commitment some years ago, and in return the DfE is funding the capital cost of the new school, the Council’s options at this advanced stage in the process are limited.