The Key for School Leaders An Essential Guide to Academy Conversion
School Inspection Handbook :
www . gov . uk / government / publications / schoolinspection-handbook-from-september-2015
Common Inspection Framework : education , skills and early years :
www . gov . uk / government / publications / common-inspection-framework-educationskills-and-early-years-from-september-2015
Ofsted and the DfE confirmed that academy conversion does not fall within Ofsted ’ s remit and will not influence an inspection judgement .
What if my school has a budget deficit ?
All applications to convert are considered on a case-by-case basis . If the school ’ s deficit is under £ 100,000 , the process will be fairly simple . If the deficit is over £ 100,000 the DfE will help the school to set up a deficit reduction plan and the application may be postponed .
The DfE has published guidance on budget surpluses and deficits in maintained schools converting to academy status , which explains that the processes to follow will depend on whether a school is converting as a sponsored academy ( under the sponsorship of an academy trust ) or as an academy converter ( without a sponsor ).
Treatment of surplus and deficit balances when maintained schools become academies :
www . gov . uk / government / uploads / system / uploads / attachment _ data / file / 416430 / School _ balances _ on _ conversion _ submission . pdf
Process for converter academies
The guidance referred to above explains that the DfE will reimburse an academy converter ’ s local authority ( LA ) for any money owed by the academy . This money will then be reclaimed by making deductions from the academy ’ s general annual grant ( GAG ). The academy and the LA must agree the amount that is owed before any money will be disbursed by the DfE .
Process for sponsored academies
For academies joining the academy trust of an external sponsor , any budget deficit will remain with the LA to be funded by its core budget . LAs may withdraw budget delegation for schools that are converting to academy status but not managing their budgets satisfactorily .
What if my school has a budget surplus ?
The same DfE guidance also explains how the transfer of budget surpluses is managed in academy converters and sponsored academies .
Converter academies with a budget surplus
A school must work with its LA to agree the amount of surplus held by the school . Once this is agreed , the LA will pay the academy trust the surplus amount .
The amount is usually determined by the LA within 4 months of the date of conversion and then paid 1 month following agreement .
Sponsored academies with a budget surplus
In sponsored academies , the route a school takes to academy status will affect how its budget surplus is treated . If the secretary of state issues an academy order following an application from the maintained school ’ s governing body or interim executive board , the surplus will transfer to the academy trust .
If the Secretary of State has issued an academy order because a school is eligible for intervention , or the school has been closed through statutory processes , the surplus will stay with the LA . In this case , the LA may agree to transfer the surplus to the academy trust . If your school is in this situation , you could check with your LA to see what it has agreed .
Does an academy joining a MAT keep its company registration number ?
When an existing academy joins a MAT , it comes under the company registration number of the MAT .
How can we estimate our budget until our conversion date ?
The Key asked one of its associate education experts , Martin Owen how a school can plan its budget if its conversion date does not coincide with the beginning or end of the LA ’ s financial year ( 1 April to 31 March ).
Budget until the conversion date
If , for example , the school knows it will receive funding from the LA for 7 months of the year , it can estimate that it will receive 7 / 12 of the funding it would normally receive , and plan its budget accordingly . For instance , the school can estimate that its salary budget will be 7 / 12 of its normal salary budget for the year .
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