Per Pupil Funding
(Bolton North East) (Con)
1. Whether he plans to increase the level of per pupil funding.
[900035]
The Chancellor of the Exchequer ()
First, Mr Speaker, may I associate myself with the message you
have just sent to our Australian friends? I also take this
opportunity to wish you and all hon. Members a happy new year.
At last year’s spending round, I announced a £7.1 billion
increase in schools funding for 2022-23 compared with this year.
That will level up funding across the country and ensure at least
£5,000 a year for every secondary school pupil next year and
£4,000 a year for every primary school pupil in 2021-22.
During the election campaign, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor
visited Bolton Lads and Girls Club, which is a real hub for
inspiring our children. Does the Chancellor agree that the uplift
in funding for schoolchildren right across Bolton North East will
ensure that our young people fulfil their true potential?
I remember that visit, and I was incredibly impressed by the
club.
May I say how delighted I am to see my hon. Friend take his place
in this House? I agree with him wholeheartedly. Our plans will
ensure that funding for every pupil in every school can rise at
least in line with inflation. Schools in Bolton North East will
attract £4,800 per pupil in 2020-21 on average and, based on the
current number of pupils, that means a 7.7% total cash increase.
(Bristol East) (Lab)
Having grown up in Bristol, the Chancellor will be familiar with
the education system there, but we have a crisis in funding for
special educational needs provision. More children are coming
forward with special educational needs, but we do not have the
funding to support them. I urge him to pay some attention to that
and to donate the necessary funds to remedy the problem.
I agree with the hon. Lady about the importance of making sure
that special educational needs are properly funded. That is
precisely why in the last spending round I increased spending by
£780 million, which I believe is the biggest increase in a
decade.
(Lichfield) (Con)
My right hon. Friend, coming from the west midlands, will know
that Staffordshire has historically been one of the most
underpaid counties per pupil. How will his changes affect
counties such as Staffordshire and others in the f40?
My hon. Friend is right to raise this issue. He has been a
champion of fairer funding for schools, especially in the west
midlands, and I agree with him about the importance of this
issue. That is precisely why, in the spending round, we made an
exception for schools by having a three-year settlement, which
means there will be a £7.1 billion increase for schools
throughout England by 2022-23, helping to bring fairer funding.
