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<p>Local authorities are responsible for planning and securing sufficient school places
for their area. 260,000 additional places have been created between May 2010 and May
2013, including 212,000 primary places, and authorities have plans to create many
more places in order to meet future demand.</p><p> </p><p>The Government provides
significant capital funding to support local authorities. The Department for Education
has already committed £5 billion for the financial years 2011-15, and in December
2013, the Department announced a further £2.35 billion in basic need funding to support
local authorities to create the additional places that will be needed by September
2017.</p><p> </p><p>Funding for free schools is additional to the basic need allocations
to local authorities. To date, seven in 10 mainstream free schools have been opened
in areas of basic need, and will create a total of over 50,000 places.</p><p> </p><p>Ensuring
that there are enough school places for the growing population is one of the Government’s
top priorities, and the Department for Education will continue to support local authorities
to create sufficient school places.</p><p> </p>
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