Schools Finance Group: notes of meeting held on Wednesday 5 November 2025

Item 3. Maintained School Audit Updates

• LA and Devon Assurance Partnership to work together to address maintained schools not engaging in audit processes

Item 4. Bromcom / Unit 4

• Schools continue to be encouraged to log all system issues to ScoMIS to enable the team to investigate and share findings back to schools more widely.
• School staff are encouraged to keep themselves up to date with training.

Item 5. Schools Revenue Funding Consultation Responses

• Minimum Funding Guarantee – SFG recommended that DEF endorse the proposal to set the Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) to at 0% in line with consultation responses.
• Excess Funding Available – SFG recommended DEF endorse the proposal to distribute any unallocated funding as per options set out in the consultation.
• Funding Gap – SFG recommended DEF endorse the proposal to bridge the funding gap in the following order:
• a. Reduced Basic Entitlement by up the allowed maximum of 2.5%.
• b. Reduced all other factors by up the allowed maximum of 2.5%.
• Movement to Another Block – Ahead of DEF, SFG agreed to carefully consider the responses relating to the movement between the Schools Block and the High Needs Block, mindful of the low response rate overall, and points raised in consultation responses around the level of school funding coming to Devon.
• De-delegation – SFG recommended that DEF endorses the de-delegation of services in line with the results of the consultation. SFG suggested that maintained Schools Forum representatives be mindful of comments relating to the locality offer.
• Central Services – SFG recommended that DEF endorse the funding of the centrally retained services, noting the comments within the responses around specific services.
• Disapplication request – SFG recommended that DEF endorse the proposal to submit a disapplication request for exceptional circumstances relating to school premises for 2026-27.

Attendance

DCC

Simon Niles (Chair) – Head of Strategy & Central Operations (Inclusion & Learning), Adrian Fox – Head Accountant (Inclusion & Learning), Karlien Bond – Principal Accountant (Inclusion & learning), Heidi Watson-Jones – Executive Assistant Inclusion & Learning

Devon Schools Leadership Services

Penny Hammett – FORT Federation, Jamie Stone – Denbury Primary, Christopher Tribble – Honiton Primary, Paul Walker – First Federation Trust, Graham Hill = Pilton Community College, Rob Gammon – The King’s School, Rachel Harper – South Molton Community College

DAG

Faith Butler – Special School Governors, Alex Walmsley – Secondary Governors, Adrian Hines – Primary Governors

Special Schools

Sarah Pickering – Mill Water School, Hannah Smart – ACE Tiverton

Apologies

Gemma Rolstone – Puffins Childcare

1. Minutes of previous meeting – 10 September 2025

• All actions complete or in hand. Minutes agreed as an accurate record

2. DSG Monitoring – month 6

• Net in-year pressure of £13.4m over the budgeted £44m
• £22.5m management actions planned this year, £8.9m Safety Valve savings achieved to date, however £7.4m forecast as not deliverable.
• SFG were reminded that any DSG balances at the end of the financial year are to be offset against the bottom line.
• 10,035 EHCPs in place currently, 3,544 in mainstream, 47% of which are Plus Packages.  Average EHCP cost has risen to £17,843.
• The group considered Devon’s position against the national context.
• Particular pressures around Alternative provision, AP Special Commissioning, Plus Packages and Tutoring costs, and independent special school placements where costs are significantly above expected budgeted position.
• EHCP Banding review remains on target to be completed with People Too organisation by end January 26.  It is expected that the new bandings will impact on the position when these start to be implemented through annual EHCP reviews.
• SFG considered whether there are possibilities around exploring commissioning new independent school provision in conjunction with Multi Academy Trusts.  Mindful of complexities around establishing new state funded schools which are not applicable to new independent provision.
• Considered DCC and DfE scrutiny of the current high needs financial position.  No DfE concerns have been escalated through the Safety Valve monitoring.  DCC support is committed at a corporate level to bolster Inclusion and Learning and SEND transformation work.
• The group discussed the issue around lack of parental confidence in the mainstream sector, with the majority of parents of children with EHCPs requesting a specialist setting.  Noted parental preference process generally drives learners to attend schools which are higher cost and away from their local community.
• Cabinet will consider a SEND sufficiency strategy in December ACTION: SN to circulate report to SFG when available.
• AF confirmed that the annual budget is set based on information available from the Inclusion and Learning service and projected patterns of growth.  This area of spend remains volatile and high risk.  ACTION: AF to share update on budget setting assumptions for 2026/27 at the next meeting.
• FSM auto-enrolment predicting approximately £1.5m additional income for schools.
• Report noted

ACTION:

• SN to circulate Cabinet sufficiency report when available
• AF to share update on budget setting assumptions for 2026/27 at the next meeting.

3. Audit Updates

• Maintained Schools Procurement Card
• SFG heard feedback on the key findings from the Maintained Schools Procurement Card audit.
• Key findings included lack of VAT and other documentation, insufficient approval processes, potentially inappropriate use of store loyalty cards, not being able to confirm the procurement card has been used by the card holder.
• Further analysis of spend will take place to provide a comparison across financial years in anticipation of additional use of the procurement card following the introduction of Bromcom. 
• Noted that total spend for Federations will include activity across several schools.
• SFG felt that school audit processes provide opportunity for staff to learn and reiterate good practice.
• Suggested that the findings should be shared with maintained and academy school through Schools Leadership Update and Bursar Briefings.
• SFG sought assurance that appropriate responses are being provided from the LA to schools who have not engaged with the audit process.  ACTION: Alexis Saffin to escalate details of schools not engaging in audit process to Simon Niles in the first instance.  Feedback to be provided at next SFG.

• Maintained Schools Audit Process
• Jo McComick shared a presentation
• Noted new maintained school audit process was introduced in 2023, adopting a more virtual and thematic approach to one of three areas over a three year cycle: Schools Financial Value Standard, non-financial systems and financial systems.
• Common themes from the 2024/25 audit findings included: finance and other policy reviews overdue or not being posted on school websites, return to work interviews not taking place, incomplete inventory records.
• Delays to report closure have resulted where schools have not provided information requested.
• SFG shared concerns that some schools have not responded to audit requests.  The LA is alerted where this happens. 
• Needs to be clear communication between the DAP and Schools Support Panel (SSP) to ensure there is good oversight of audit engagement, school processes and financial assurance. ACTION: SN to link Alice McShane and Claire Moore to enable DAP to provide updates to SSP.
• SFG were reassured to learn that in person audit visits may still be requested by schools.
• Feedback from DAP was requested around the use of Bromcom to provide financial reporting to governors.  Noted this area would be picked up through the SFVS themed audits in Spring term 2026.  ACTION: JMc and Claire Moore to provide update for SFG on impact of introduction of Bromcom on schools’ ability to provide effective reporting to governing bodies and the impact on the audit process.
• Noted the reduction in the number of maintained school audits was linked to schools joining an academy trust.  SFG considered whether a full audit should be conducted when maintained schools academise, but noted that the annual process means that the school will have been recently audited.

ACTION

• Alexis Saffin and Claire Moore to escalate details of schools not engaging in DAP audit processes to Simon Niles in the first instance.  Feedback to be provided at next SFG.
• SN to ensure that Alice McShane and Claire Moore are linked to enable DAP to provide maintained school audit updates to SSP.
• JMc and Claire Moore to provide update for SFG on impact of introduction of Bromcom on schools’ ability to provide effective reporting to governing bodies and the impact on the audit process.

4. Bromcom / Unit 4 Update

• Bromcom
• ScoMIS confirmed that all system issues flagged by schools have been addressed.  Noted that some communications continue to be sent into ScoMIS and the LA, however when investigated, it has become apparent that those issues have already been fixed.
• Schools continue to be encouraged to log all system issues to ScoMIS to enable the team to continue to investigate and share findings back to schools more widely.
• Noted a significant widespread issue was apparent ahead of half term, which was addressed quickly by the software supplier.  The system is continually being developed and improved which can result in ‘outages’.
• ScoMIS continues to work with Devon finance colleagues, Bromcom nationally and individual schools.  Users are provided with updates and FAQs to ensure they are made aware of any upcoming system changes.
• SFG considered whether communications are effective.
• Unit 4
• Considered the move from old to new financial codes to support more effective budget reconciliation.  Following consultation, school business managers responded that an earlier transition (April 26) would be preferred.
• The technical next steps towards this implementation were explained.
• Schools have been kept up to date at Bursar briefings.
• Schools were reminded to keep themselves up to date with training and to continue to report any system issues or difficulties so that these can be addressed swiftly.
• It was felt that, in addition to school business managers, school leaders and governors should also be receiving an overview of the developments.  ACTION: Jenny Ryding to share regular updates through Schools Leadership Updates and Phase Association communication channels

ACTION

• DSLS to consider how schools are being communicated with around Bromcom / Unit 4 system issues and what further consideration would be beneficial.
• Jenny Ryding to share regular updates through Schools Leadership Updates and Phase Association communication channels.  HWJ to share key contact details.

5. Schools Revenue Funding Consultation Responses

• 35% of individual schools responded to the consultation
• SFG were mindful that the low response rate and the low attendance at the funding consultation briefings may have resulted in a lack of overall understanding of the issues.  It was felt that some school comments reflected frustration with national schools funding policy. 
• ACTION: KB to map the responses with the schools attending the  Schools Funding Consultation briefings
• Minimum Funding Guarantee
• SFG recommended that DEF endorse the proposal to set the Minimum Funding Guarantee (MFG) to at 0% in line with consultation responses.
• Excess Funding Available
• SFG recommended DEF endorse the proposal to distribute any unallocated funding as per options set out in the consultation.
• Funding Gap
• SFG recommended DEF endorse the proposal to bridge the funding gap in the following order:
• a. Reduced Basic Entitlement by up the allowed maximum of 2.5%.
• b. Reduced all other factors by up the allowed maximum of 2.5%.
• Movement to another Block
• The majority of 68% responses disagreed to a 0.5% transfer between Schools Block and High Needs Block
• Should the Schools Forum reject a block transfer, SFG noted that the Council will pursue the request with the DfE via a disapplication to the Secretary of State to obtain a transfer up to 0.5%, based on the Devon Safety Valve intervention programme and the strategy seeking to sustainably manage the high needs block funding.
• Ahead of DEF, SFG agreed not to make a formal recommendation on this matter but have concluded that the DEF decision needs to carefully consider the consultation responses relating to the movement between the Schools Block and the High Needs Block, mindful of the low response rate overall, and points raised in consultation responses around the wider issue of the underfunding of Devon’s schools.
• De-Delegation
• Noted that the Inclusion and Learning locality offer to schools is still being developed following the redesign, and may have influenced the tone of the consultation responses.
• SFG considered that the next year will provide an opportunity for schools and the local authority to work closely together to articulate what is included in the offer.  Locality leads will need to ensure that coproduction of the locality offer is well underway, and communicated with schools from January. 
• ACTION: locality Heads of Service to be asked to provide an update to March DEF on the locality offer and service delivery and engagement with schools.
• A majority of maintained primary schools and a majority of maintained secondary schools supported retaining all the services funded through de-delegation including: • Inclusion and Learning Locality Offer • Copyrights, Licences and Subscriptions • Trade Union Facilitation • Jury Service and Magistrate Support • Parental Service • Schools Support Panel (Contingency) & Exceptional Events
• SFG recommended that DEF endorses the de-delegation of services in line with the results of the consultation. SFG suggested that maintained Schools Forum representatives be mindful of comments relating to the locality offer.
• Central Services
• Comments only were sought on the central services (phase associations, school admissions and AnyComms+).
• Responses indicated that there has been an increase in confidence, around the phase association offer since the previous consultation.
• Noted some responses asked how the LA would respond if schools had not agreed to fund AnyComms.  Noted that schools are free to provide a solution independently which would integrate with DCC systems.  A bulk purchase arrangement remains the most effective solution.
• Positive comments were received about the school admissions service.
• SFG recommended that DEF endorse the funding of the centrally retained services, noting the comments within the responses around specific services.
• Disapplication Request
• SFG considered the disapplication request relating to exceptional circumstances funding which is linked to school premises costs e.g. dual use sports facilities. 
• Agreed the local authority should reiterate to affected schools that this funding is applied for annually, is not guaranteed and may be affected by any changes in national policy.  ACTION: KB
• SFG requested a schedule detailing the schools affected and the individual circumstances to clarify understanding for DEF. ACTION: KB to share exceptional circumstances detail by school
• SFG recommended that DEF endorse the proposal to submit a disapplication request for exceptional circumstances relating to school premises for 2026-27.
• It was felt that an early proactive approach to the coproduction of the schools funding consultation has improved preparation and understanding of the issues and proposals in this year’s consultation.
• The local authority expects the 26/27 funding announcement to be made by the DfE by mid-December.

ACTION

• KB to map the responses with the schools attending the Schools Funding Consultation briefings
• Locality Heads of Service to be asked to provide an update to March DEF on the locality offer and service delivery and engagement with schools.
• KB to share exceptional circumstances detail by school
• KB to communicate to affected schools key messages and risks around annual agreement of exceptional circumstances funding

6. Any Other Business

• SFG Remit
• SN requested feedback from SFG members with a view to ensuring discussion remains purposeful and requested, agenda items from SFG members .
• Growth Fund Review
• Mindful that the Growth fund has supported the HNB deficit, and is likely to diminish over time.
• A request has been received from a MAT to ghost fund a MFG of 28 pupils over a year group.  This will be modelled and considered at next SFG in the context of DfE Growth Fund guidance.
• Items for DEF
• Month 6 monitoring and funding consultation.
• BromCom and Unit 4

Future meeting dates

• Friday 9 January 2026 (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams)
• Agenda to include: DSG mth 8 monitoring, Budget preparation, growth funding, feedback re. non-compliance with maintained school audit processes.
• Wednesday 4 March 2026 (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams)
• Wednesday 3 June 2026 (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams)
• Wed 15 July 2026 – Consultation Working Group (09.30 – 12.30 – County Hall)
• Wednesday 9 September 2026  (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams followed by Consultation Working Group)
• Wednesday 4 November 2026  (09.15 – 12.30 – Face to face at County Hall)
• Friday 9 January 2027  (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams)
• Wednesday 3 March 2027  (09.15 – 12.30 – Teams)