Key Takeaways
- •Minutes from October 2025 meeting were approved with clarification that yearly reports occur at end of academic year, not chronological year.
- •Adrian Massey resigned and was replaced by Matthew Symonds, while Jo Lumbard's resignation left one Academy vacancy unfilled.
- •Pupil Growth Formula 2026/27 report was deferred to January 2026 extraordinary meeting due to insufficient information about school impact numbers and funding amounts.
- •Schools Forum approved a minimum funding guarantee of 0% and capping mechanism with basic entitlement reduction of 0.25%, cap of 1.10% and scale of 81.75%.
- •De-delegated budget recommendations were deferred to January 2026 meeting due to absence of Primary Maintained School representatives.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain errors. Read the full minutes for the official record.
The meeting opened with a statement that there were no declarations of interest. A resolution was passed, moved by Sean Pinhay and seconded by Tim Hooper, to clarify that the yearly Schools Funding Formula report for 2026/27 is produced at the end of the academic year rather than the calendar year. The minutes of the Cornwall Schools Forum held on 17 October 2025 were confirmed as correctly recorded and were to be signed by the Chairman. The Democratic Officer reported that Adrian Massey had resigned and was replaced by Matthew Symonds, and that Jo Lumbard’s resignation left one Academy vacancy.
The Head of Education Effectiveness Cornwall gave a verbal update on the work‑plan progress. Items added to upcoming agendas were the Balances Policy for the February meeting and the Music Hub end‑of‑year report for the June meeting. The revised work plan will be circulated to Forum members together with the minutes. A working group on contingency funds was proposed, and members wishing to join were asked to contact the Democratic Officer.
A presentation on the Pupil Growth Formula 2026/27 sparked several points of discussion. Members noted that the number of schools affected and the scale of impact were not disclosed, and they requested data on how threshold changes would alter funding amounts. Two funding options were outlined: Option A, which tweaks the methodology to concentrate funds on schools with the most acute pupil‑number changes, and Option B, which retains the methodology but reduces the payout for all eligible schools. Participants expressed difficulty interpreting the information and asked for an anonymised visual table. The Chairman, seconded by Tim Hooper, moved and resolved that the report be deferred to an Extraordinary meeting in January 2026. Concerns raised about the fairness of the consultation process were addressed, with the Chairman confirming adherence to the Department for Education’s representation policy and noting that the consultation survey had been circulated early enough for schools to respond.
The Finance Analyst outlined proposals for the 2026/27 funding formula, introducing a capping and scaling mechanism intended to protect small primary schools given the shortfall between Cornwall’s available funds and the national formula. The Forum voted on several items: the minimum funding guarantee was set at 0 % (moved by Sean Pinhay, seconded by Sam Davis); the basic entitlement reduction for capping school budgets was fixed at 0.25 % with a cap of 1.10
Attendance
No attendance data recorded.
Decisions
Record and sign minutes of 17 Oct 2025 meeting
The minutes of the Cornwall Schools Forum meeting held on 17 October 2025 were correctly recorded and will be signed by the Chairman.
Defer Pupil Growth Formula 2026/27 report
The council has delayed the Pupil Growth Formula 2026/27 report until an extraordinary meeting in January 2026.
Set minimum funding guarantee to 0%
The council decided that the minimum funding guarantee will be set at zero percent.
Adopt capping and scaling option for school budgets
The council will cut school funding by 0.25% but limit any single school’s reduction to a maximum of 1.10% and set overall school budgets at 81.75% of the previous amount.
Mirror National Funding Formula factor values
We will keep using the same factor values as the National Funding Formula, unless recommendation 2 calls for a change.
Delegate review of central school services budgets
The council has given the Service Director for Education and Community Health the job of reviewing the budgets for central school services.
Defer recommendations 5‑10 due to lack of Primary Maintained School reps
Recommendations 5‑10 will be delayed until the extraordinary meeting in January 2026 because no primary maintained school representatives were present.
Delegate issue resolution for funding formula calculations
Senior officers and the Chair or Vice‑Chair of the Schools Forum will handle any problems that arise when calculating the funding formula.
Related meetings
Adjacent Cornwall Schools Forum meetings:
Other meetings within a week
- Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee — Tamar Bridge and Torpoint Ferry Joint Committee - 5 December 2025 (5 Dec 2025)
- Miscellaneous Licensing Committee — Miscellaneous Licensing Committee - 5 December 2025 (5 Dec 2025)
- Pensions Committee — Pensions Committee - 10 December 2025 (10 Dec 2025)
- Cornwall Growth Board — Cornwall Growth Board - 11 December 2025 (11 Dec 2025)
- Cabinet — Cabinet - 17 December 2025 (17 Dec 2025)
- Street Trading and Pavement Licensing Sub Committee — Street Trading and Pavement Licensing Sub Committee - 17 December 2025 (17 Dec 2025)