24-school academy trust “using EHCP and pupil premium cash to fund its central topslice,” union says chain has admitted

The Arthur Terry Learning Partnership faced huge anger on this and other issues around its financial management, at demonstration in London yesterday.

An academy trust, which is facing a huge campaign of protest over its financial management, has been taking pupil premium (PP) and special needs funding meant for pupils to pay for its central operations, a union has stated.

The Arthur Terry Learning Partnership (ATLP) has been including PP and Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) money in its “topslice” calculations, according to the National Education Union.

The NEU has now said that the trust had told it, during negotiations over ongoing strike action about proposed frontline job cuts, that its central charges are calculated as a proportion of all the money allocated to its schools.

When the NEU said that this meant that the topslice included a proportion of PP and EHCP funds, which legally should be going in full to schools for the education of specific pupils, the trust accepted that this was the case, the union said.

The issue was causing serious concern among some ATLP teachers, who were part of a large and vociferous demonstration against the trust outside the Department for Education in London yesterday, which I attended. ATLP’s accounts indicate that its topslice was 24 per cent last year.

Meanwhile, a petition started only five days ago, seeking a vote of no confidence and the resignation of Richard Gill, ATLP’s chief executive, has reached 2,000 signatures. 

UPDATE: The trust responded, late afternoon on Wednesday, to say: "Regarding your query on EHCP and Pupil Premium funding, the Trust has several pupils eligible for additional funding. While some multi-academy trusts may fund these roles at school level, the Trust has taken the decision to invest some of this resource in centrally funded roles whic provide intervention and tailored support to vulnerable pupils. This also enables our SENDCOS [special educational needs and disabilities co-ordinators] and Designated Safeguarding Leads to access best-practice support and resources when needed."

I asked whether ATLP could say, given the above, whether all of the money that it receives for EHCP and PP pupils is spent on support for these specific pupils. I have yet to hear back.