Admit school ‘efficiencies’ are cuts, DfE told

Rather than photocopying costs, the government’s focus should be helping schools to train staff properly, expert urges
19th June 2018, 12:38pm

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Admit school ‘efficiencies’ are cuts, DfE told

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The government should accept its £3 billion of school “efficiency savings” amount to “cuts”, a funding expert has told MPs.

Luke Sibieta, research fellow at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, was speaking at the Commons Education Select Committee this morning.

He was asked about the likely impact of the £3 billion of efficiency savings that the Department for Education has said schools need to make by 2019-20.

He said: “I think the discussion and focus, and wording these as efficiency savings, is a little bit unhelpful. I think you should call it what it is: it’s cutting spending.”

It was very difficult to assess the long-term impact of cutting spending on pupil outcomes, Mr Sibieta said.

But he added: “We know that raising spending has a beneficial impact on outcomes: presumably the relationship goes in the other direction as well.”

The DfE has issued a range of advice to schools on how to make the “efficiency savings”, for example by addressing procurement costs.

But, last week, a headteacher and funding campaign leader blasted the DfE’s latest set of advice, calling it “insultingly pathetic” and pointing out that most schools would already be doing these things.

‘Clear incentive’ to make savings

Mr Sibieta today highlighted that schools had been closely monitoring their budgets for some time.

He said: “I’m pretty sure a headteacher will know and have a clear incentive to make as many efficiency savings and get the biggest bank per buck on their procurement budget, their maintenance budget. They will have been doing that year in, year out for quite a long time, and more in recent times.”

He added: “A more helpful focus would be in terms of the productivity of a school - how can it best use its staff to deliver the best outcomes for pupils.

“Rather than focusing on what the photocopying costs for certain schools should be, [the DfE] should be advising schools on how to use their staff, and how to train them well to ensure beneficial outcomes for pupils.”

The hearing was held as part of the committee’s inquiry into school and college funding. Two other witnesses also attended: Natalie Perera, executive director of the Education Policy Institute, and Angela Donkin, chief social scientist at the National Foundation for Educational Research.

Ms Perera said some of the DfE’s efficiency tools were “helpful”. 

However, she added: “Actually I don’t think they’ve done an assessment of what it would mean if those efficiencies were to be met - having a broad and balanced curriculum and having wider pastoral care - particularly in deprived areas.”

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