Schools not spending £196m

More than £196 million of taxpayers' money meant for spending on pupils is being held back for a variety of projects, including new buildings and teachers' pay, our poll of 22 boroughs reveals.

The Government wants to claw back a large slice of the funds because it believes the money should be spent on children's education and not languish in the bank for a rainy day.

This week Ed Balls, the Children, Schools and Families Secretary, will announce whether he will press ahead with plans to put five per cent of the estimated £1.6 billion in unspent budgets across Britain into a special fund. It will then be used for redistribution to all schools, including those in the red.

Headteachers and most London town halls are opposed to the levy, which they say would unfairly penalise schools that practise prudent financial management.

Teachers' union the NASUWT has argued for years that excessive balances are unfair on children and could be spent on improving teachers' pay and conditions. General secretary Chris Keates said: "Pupils are not getting their entitlement. Where is this rainy day that apparently never comes?"

She urged ministers to stand firm against pressure from David Cameron to drop the plans. The Tory leader sees it as another opportunity to force ministers into a U-turn following Gordon Brown's decision to postpone the election.

Ms Keates said: "That's politics. If every time the Opposition puts a bit of pressure on, or there's an adverse headline in the newspapers, they are going to change policy, quite frankly we are going to be in a mess about how education policy is taken forward."

Twenty authorities provided the Standard with details of their schools' unspent money. Kensington & Chelsea and Merton refused to supply figures. The pots of cash ranged from £5 million in Sutton to almost £29 million at Tower Hamlets.

On average, councils had £10 million each in reserve. A total of more than £9.5 million from across the 20 boroughs stands to be redistributed under the Government's plans. Of the 15 that expressed an opinion, 11 opposed the proposals.

Waltham Forest said: "Most schools have good reasons for holding balances. We believe it is unfair the main winners are likely to be those schools that have not been prudent in managing their budgets."

Schools minister Jim Knight said: "Our proposals would help heads and councils recycle surplus cash to other local schools for the benefit of children. No school would be punished for being prudent or planning for the future."

SCHOOLS' STOCKPILES OF CASH