Claim: Funding for schools is at record levels
Key quote: “In fact the level of funding going into schools is at record levels.” Theresa May, 30 April 2017
Analysis: You can look at the budget in a number of ways. You can look at the actual cash that’s being spent on schools, the value of that cash after taking inflation into account, and how it divides down per pupil. Prices and pupil numbers are both rising, so these both create pressures on the funding that’s needed.
The schools budget is set to rise in cash terms from about £40 billion in 2015/16 to nearly £43 billion in 2019/20, a record level. That’s also a rise when you take expected inflation into account.
Once you factor in rising pupil numbers as well, the budget per pupil is set to fall by around 8% between 2014/15 and 2019/20—taking school-specific inflation into account. That’s according to both the Institute for Fiscal Studies and the National Audit Office.
“This will be the first time since the mid-1990s that school spending has fallen in real terms”, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has said.
Verdict: The cash amount going to schools in England is at record levels and rising ahead of inflation. Spending per pupil is set to fall by 8% between 2014 and 2020, taking school-specific inflation into account.
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