SCHOOLS across Winchester are in line for a cash boost in the region of £2.45million in the next academic year – but campaigners claim the majority will remain worse off than they were several years ago.

The government has announced how much funding has been allocated to schools using the National Funding Formula (NFF) for 2020-21.

Hampshire County Council has received an indication of how much it is set to be given, with a breakdown of the current financal guidelines for each school.

Due to the ‘soft’ use of the NFF in the county, the local authority could make adjustments to these figures so it can cover all educational needs.

To see how much your child's school is currently set to get, search the table below. The list below includes both primary and secondary schools.

Winchester and Chandler’s Ford MP Steve Brine, inset above, said the announcement was a “big win” for the area.

“I am very pleased with this announcement which marks a real staging post in the campaign many of us have fought,” said Mr Brine. “School budgets have been largely protected from austerity and per-pupil funding has risen but changes to the lump sum and significant cost pressures have really tested headteachers and governors.

“On top of that we have a serious issue with high needs funding in the county with many local schools seeing a marked increase in the needs of children, especially with regards to social, emotional and mental health.

“This cash uplift will be very welcome in my constituency and, while there is always more to do, I think parents and teachers will recognise this positive response to the very real concerns I raised on their behalf in Parliament. This is what strength and experience delivers for our area.”

The allocations present a mixed forecast for Winchester schools, with some predicted a sharp increase while others could receive less than they did this year.

This is in part due to the method used to calculate the NFF, which includes a large section being based on the number of pupils at the school on the most recent count, with an update due over the coming months.

The Westgate School is listed in the Department for Education data as being in line for a 7.85 per cent increase next year and Perins School could receive an additional 6.19 per cent. Meanwhile, Kings’ School is listed as receiving just 0.98 per cent more than it did this year.

At primary school level, Stanmore Primary could be hit with an 8.72 per cent reduction. Western Church of England Primary and St Bede Church of England Primary could also face a drop of more than three per cent.

Locally funding for primary school pupils will be set at £4,044 per pupil, increasing to £5,080 per secondary pupil for 2020-21.

Finance managers at Winchester schools welcomed the additional funding but admitted it would not allow for widespread investments.

Ian Pickles, business manager at Kings’ School, said: “If they had not put additional finding in we would be in crisis. I am going to be as careful with my budget next year as I was this year.

“It is great they are giving us a funding boost but we desperately needed the additional funding.

“This allows us to hold our current position.”

Alison Caplin, bursar at the Henry Beaufort School said schools across the county faced challenges funding for high needs.

“We are not struggling as a school,” she said. “We are in a fortunate position. We do not owe a lot of money and we have quite a good reserve. This is a very welcome move from central government but in terms of how it will actually look, we are still in a bit of limbo.”

Research by online tool schoolcuts.org.uk suggests more than 16,500 schools nationally are losing out under the new cash allocations, with more than 30 Winchester schools facing a funding shortfall in 2020-21.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Lecturers, said: “We are not being churlish, we are just stating the facts. The extra money for schools is not enough to reverse the cuts and the funding crisis is not over.

“In fact, many schools will have to make further cuts next year because they are receiving only an inflationary increase and school costs are rising above inflation. We need an uplift for all schools which restores funding levels to where they were before the cuts began to bite and which keeps pace with costs.”

Cllr Roz Chadd, Hampshire County Council executive member for education, said: “We welcome the additional funding for Hampshire schools but are clear that, at this stage, the figures are indicative and subject to change in the light of updated pupil data. The money for high needs is also very welcome but we anticipate that this will only assist with the accrued deficits and will not meet current and future rising demands.

“Up until now we have aligned to the National Funding Formula as far as possible. However, we do have some concerns about the use of the minimum pupil levels as a method for calculating allocations and the impact of the pay pledge to increase the starting salary of teachers to £30,000.”