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Schools Forum - Monday 23 June 2025 3:30 pm
June 23, 2025 View on council website Watch video of meeting Read transcript (Professional subscription required)Summary
The Kingston upon Thames Schools Forum met to discuss school place planning, financial updates, the SEND Futures plan, and other key issues affecting schools in the borough. The forum approved the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) outturn position for 2024/25 and noted updates on the 2025/26 financial situation and the 2026/27 budget planning timetable. Maintained schools also approved an update to the Scheme for Financing Schools.
School Place Planning
Henry Kilpin, the Associate Director for School Place Planning, presented an update on school place planning in Kingston. He noted a surplus of primary school places due to falling birth rates, but a continued high demand for secondary places.
- Primary Schools: Applications for reception places were down by 412 since 2015. The occupancy level was at 90.7%, with a vacancy rate of 9.3%. Six schools were at or over 100% capacity, while seven were below 85% capacity.
- Secondary Schools: Applications had increased by 16.2% since 2015, with schools collectively over 100% capacity across all year groups except year 7.
- Specialist Provision: There had been a 111% increase in specialist places since 2011. A review of Specialist Resource Provisions (SRPs) was underway, with a tiered banding system being introduced.
Kilpin also discussed future demand, noting that primary reception numbers were expected to decrease further, while secondary demand would move more in line with capacity before a surplus emerges towards the end of the decade. He also mentioned planned new provision, including Norberton Primary School, Surbiton Primary Academy, Kings Meadow Church of England Secondary School, and Spring School.
Carol Buchanan, a school governor at Christ Church C of E Primary School, asked about the possibility of using the King Charles Centre site for a special school, given the surplus of primary places and the shortage of special educational needs (SEN) places. Kilpin responded that the council needed to await the outcome of a national review before making any decisions.
Councillor Farshid Sadr-Hashemi clarified that the DfE review could result in three outcomes: no need, no need at this time with a review in 5-10 years, or approval to proceed.
Finance Outturn 2024/25
Scott Gardner, Head of Finance, presented the 2024/25 finance outturn position. The total DSG allocation for 2024/25 was £189.187 million. The in-year overspend on the DSG was £7.538 million, with £7.939 million of that within the high needs block1. The overall carry forward position was a deficit of £8.266 million. Maintained school balances decreased by £1.203 million. The forum approved the DSG outturn position for the 2024/25 financial year and the carry forward.
Gardner noted that there were no schools with a deficit recovery plan at the end of 2024-25, but that two schools were experiencing difficulty setting a budget for 2025-26.
Finance Update 2025/26 and Budget Planning Timetable 2026/27
Gardner also presented the 2025/26 finance update and the 2026/27 budget planning timetable. The DSG allocation for 2025/26 was £207.720 million. A projected in-year overspend of £9.995 million was expected, with a cumulative deficit of £18.261 million. The DfE had extended the statutory override2 until the end of 2027-28.
The forum was asked to note the latest DSG allocation for 2025/26, the projected DSG outturn position for 2025/26, and the proposed budget setting timetable for 2026/27, and to approve the consultation with schools in advance of the September forum meeting regarding central DSG budgets, which it did.
SEND Futures Plan
Charis Penfold, Director of Education Services, Leadership and Management, provided an update on the SEND Futures Plan. She noted that Kingston now had over 2000 Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). Good parental engagement and vocational pathways were highlighted as positive aspects. A SEND service restructure and the cluster pilot were also underway. Challenges included delays to the Spring School move, increasing EHC needs assessments, inflationary increases in post-16 provisions, and school budget pressures.
The forum noted performance against the safety valve agreement, progress with the implementation of the SEND Futures Plan, and progress made by the task and finish group on the Kingston Cluster Pilot.
High Needs Subgroup
Ash Ali, Chief Executive Officer of Every Child Every Day Academy Trust, summarised a report prepared by Esther Brooks, CEO of Coombe Academy Trust, on the High Needs Subgroup. The subgroup was established in response to a peer review related to the safety valve. The objectives of the forum are to examine the detail of the spend from the high needs block and analyse factors that directly or indirectly impact on the cost of supporting those young people through high needs funding. The high needs group recommends that minutes of the high needs group are included in the question and answer documentation, that they can be read more widely by schools forum in order to provide context of funding related aspects discussed in the schools forum.
The forum noted the report and the valuable role of the High Needs Subgroup in its advisory position to the Schools Forum and AFC.
Alternative Provision
Lucy Mastrocola, Coombe Lane West School Headteacher, provided an update on alternative provision, specifically regarding Maldon Oaks School. Maldon Oaks, like every other school is experiencing budgetary pressure. The only difference is that Maldon Oaks is funded in a different way in that there are annual discussions around the number of people places, as well as the kind of unit cost for those places. A more formal item would be brought to the September forum, and it was recommended that a subgroup or heads teachers meeting be held to discuss options with Sam Axbey, Head Teacher at Maldon Oaks, beforehand.
Scheme for Financing Schools
Gardner presented the 2025/26 Scheme for Financing Schools, noting that the only change was in Section 8.3.21, relating to the cost of an undisputed invoice for energy. The forum approved the update to the scheme.
Union Duties
The forum agreed to proceed with a consultation on funding for union duties, with the results and a vote to be presented at the September meeting.
Other Updates
There were no other updates.
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The high needs block is a ring-fenced part of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) used to fund provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) from their early years to age 25. ↩
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A statutory override is a temporary measure that allows local authorities to exclude deficits on their Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) account from their overall financial position. ↩
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