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<p>The department recognises that schools will be facing financial pressures in the
coming months, particularly due to the increase in energy prices. We are looking carefully
at how this will impact schools and considering what additional support could be offered.</p><p>The
department is contacting all schools in England, asking them to complete a survey,
to get basic data on their current and future energy tariffs. We hope to better understand
how they have been affected by recent energy price increases, and to inform considerations
of additional support that could be offered. The survey is open until 2 June 2022,
and all schools are encouraged to respond, and can be accessed via the following link:
<a href="https://bit.ly/DfEEnergysurvey" target="_blank">https://bit.ly/DfEEnergysurvey</a>.</p><p>Cost
increases should be considered in the wider context of funding for schools. The government
is delivering a £4 billion cash increase in the core schools budget next year, taking
total funding to £53.8 billion. This includes an additional £1.2 billion for schools
in the new schools supplementary grant for the 2022/23 financial year. Overall, this
represents a 7% cash terms per pupil boost, which will help schools meet the pressures
we know they are facing, particularly around energy costs.</p><p>Through the Dedicated
Schools Grant and the indicative figures for the Schools Supplementary Grant for mainstream
schools combined, funding in Havering is forecast to see an extra £14.3 million for
schools in 2022/23, taking total funding for 2022/23 in Havering to over £211.7 million.
This is an average increase of 5.7% per pupil (this per pupil funding increase excludes
growth funding, which is additional funding, provided for schools seeing significant
increases in pupil numbers).</p><p>All schools can access a range of school resource
management (SRM) tools to help them get the best value from their resources, save
on regular purchases, and reduce non-teaching costs. The department’s SRM tools include
recommended deals for energy costs and ancillary services relating to energy. The
Get Help Buying for Schools service will be able to offer support to schools in switching
and entering new contracts. Guidance will be updated on a regular basis to inform
schools of the market and commercial position, with practical advice on exiting existing
and entering new contracts. This guidance can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-for-schools"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/buying-for-schools</a>.</p><p>The department
understands that every school’s circumstances are different, and where schools are
in serious financial difficulty, they should contact their local authority or the
Education and Skills Funding Agency.</p>
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