School Business Manager Network LA Update Wednesday 9 th February 2011 Julie Bowdidge
Three Big Things Financial context New Government and political climate Traded Services
Financial Context Severe cuts in local government budgets Locally we have to reduce spending by £84 million over 3 years Innovation and Efficiency (I & E) All services reducing budgets – staffing implications Leaner, meaner statutory, no! Grant funding going or divert to schools
New Government More autonomy for schools plus less red tape More accountability direct to parents Free schools / Academy/ “Free” from LA “control” Many agencies gone or changing remit LA moving from being a provider of school improvement to a commissioner
Some Key Changes No more SIPs New concise National curriculum No specification of teaching methods Review of EYFS curriculum Proportionate approach to inspection New framework Greater teacher authority to deal with behaviour
English Baccalaureate English Maths Double Science Humanities Language (Ancient or modern) Leaving age raised to 17 in 2013 and 18 in 2015 Schools working together – school to school support
Funding – more grants direct to schools Pupil Premium Loosening up of pay and conditions framework Revised regulations to make it easier to deal with underperforming staff members
More flexibility in models of Governance Removal of centralised target setting New natural floor targets 35% GCSE – 60% L4 English and maths
More standardised information from schools –Attainment –Trends –Class size –Class composition –Attendance –Finance –Curriculum details –Reading schemes Saving for schools on back office and procurement £1bn by
Traded Services New approach to schools Not just CPD Commissioning / brokerage Web based applications
No buyback – service will go. More on working with neighbouring LAs – economies of scale
What are we doing? Reviewing / Reviewing / Reviewing “cutting out cloth” New relationships Big Conversation Partnerships are key to preserving what we value in Kirklees