Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 14 December 2022.

The Minutes of the meeting held on 14 December 2022 (copies of which had been circulated) were approved as a correct record.

Councillors and officers to declare any interests which they have in any of the items on the agenda for the meeting.

Councillors and officers were invited to declare any interests that they had in any of the items on the agenda for the meeting.

No declarations were made.

To consider a report of the Director of Education.

The report provides details relating to the Growth in free school meals in Stockport and provides details relating to:-

·       Deprivation Review

·       What are schools trying to achieve

·       The lived experience

·       What schools do with the money they receive

·       Other issues facing school

·       What the local authority has done so far

·       The impact of poverty proofing

The Panel is requested to comment on and note the report.

Officer contact: Tim Bowman, email: tim.bowman@tameside.gov.uk

The Director for Education submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) which provided details relating to the growth in free school meals in Stockport and provided further details relating to:-

·         Deprivation Review

·         What schools are trying to achieve

·         The lived experience

·         What schools do with the money they receive

·         Other issues facing schools

·         What the Local Authority is doing

·         The impact of poverty proofing

The following comments were made/issues raised:-

·         Members clarified that the National Funding Formula in regard to the Dedicated School Grant had already been implemented in Stockport’s secondary schools. It was commented that movement on this had been slower in regard to primary schools in order to protect funding streams for smaller schools.

·         Members questioned the levels of funding available through the Pupil Premium Grant (PPG) for early years children, and the methods by which the Council helped local providers to maximise this funding. It was commented that the Council had oversight of the application of early years PPG funding through the Early Years Team of educational colleagues who would visit childminders and other local independent providers. It was noted that further detail on the amount of Early Years PPG funding available could be provided to Members by email following the meeting.

·         It was clarified that Holiday Activities and Food provision only applied to school-age children.

·         Members questioned the response rate for questionnaires for families in receipt of free school meals. It was commented that researchers had been staggered by the strong engagement with the surveys, noting that families had appreciated the anonymity of the questionnaires when providing feedback and the availability of researchers to talk to in-person on school grounds.

·         Members questioned whether catering companies being used locally were visibly identifying students who were in receipt of free school meals. It was commented that this practice was known to have occurred in local schools. It was further noted that it was in the remit of the schools and their Headteacher to challenge their contracted meal providers on this issue, and the stigma that this could place on children receiving free school meals.

·         An example of a success of the Poverty Proofing program was given as schools ending requirements for specific uniforms for certain year groups, such as specific clothing to identify Year 6’s in primary schools.

·         Members questioned whether lessons could be learned from Stockport schools that were successfully implementing Poverty proofing strategies. It was noted that any lessons learned would be implemented across the borough when possible. However, it was important to note the local context of each school which, for instance, would vary greatly in the number of pupils on roll who receive free school meals and the associated funding.

·         It was noted that national efforts to improve educational outcomes for children receiving free school meals were being implemented locally, but that statistics did not yet reflect increasing equality in this regard. Consequently, it was emphasised that new strategies must be implemented to account for local circumstances and polarisation.

·         Members requested a rough timeline for the proposed implementation of Poverty Proofing strategies across all Stockport schools. It was noted that there is a commitment for the next wave of 26 schools, but that Stockport overall has 85 primary schools on top of its secondary and special schools, and that consequently this could be a lengthy process. It was noted that the process had already been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and that it would depend on the continuation of funding streams in the future.

·         Overall, Members welcomed the comprehensive report and thanked officers for their work on this review panel.

To provide the Panel with the opportunity to discuss the information and evidence presented by officers and witnesses, receive responses to questions relating to the scope of the review and formulate recommendations.

There were no further questions.

To agree the dates for future meetings (February 2023) and the timescales for undertaking the review.

RESOLVED – That there would be no further meetings of the Scrutiny Review Panel – Growth in Free School Meals.