School Budget Planning and Cost Saving Toolkit

This supportive pack contains four toolkits (which can also be purchased individually if needed) designed to help you explore different facets of your budget, both in terms of how you can increase income and make cost savings. Each toolkit covers key questions and offers actions and considerations for you to explore in greater depth, which will support your thinking when looking for ways to make savings and avoid some of the most difficult aspects of budget management.

It contains the following four comprehensive, editable (Word .docx) resources:

Budget Planning and Cost Saving Toolkit: Low and Decreasing Pupil Numbers - This 14-page document explores one of the most challenging areas to combat: falling pupil numbers on roll. It'll help you explore and respond to elements outside of your control (such as falling birth rates) and those within your control, such as your school's unique selling points, reputation and visibility. With guidance and reflective questions around boosting pupil numbers, improving marketing strategies and reducing the numbers of pupils leaving your roll, it'll allow you to identify strategies to mitigate the effects on your budget of having low pupil numbers on roll.

Budget Planning and Cost Saving Toolkit: Escalating and High Staffing Costs - With increases to staff pay and pensions not always being accounted for in the funding schools receive, spiralling staff costs can heavily impact your budget. This 11-page toolkit helps you explore your staffing structure vs. the impact they have, how to reduce costs associated with CPD and recruitment without affecting the quality of teaching and learning, and potential ways to reduce supply costs. It'll help you to consider whether you can utilise changes to staffing hours and contracts to benefit both staff members and your setting and there is a section on whether making redundancies is a serious consideration you need explore further.

Budget Planning and Cost Saving Toolkit: Managing the SEND Budget while Supporting Needs - Often, staffing and supporting the needs of pupils with SEND are closely intertwined but this can have cost implications that are challenging to manage. This 11-page toolkit helps you to explore SEND across your setting while considering the associated staffing costs and potential areas for making savings, including a whole-school understanding of how to use quality first teaching strategies effectively, exploring how individual and group-based interventions can help you make savings without reducing quality and considering if there are ways to support pupils with SEND without solely relying on utilising support staff.

Budget Planning and Cost Saving Toolkit: Planning an Effective and Efficient Budget - While low pupil numbers and high staffing costs have a large impact on the budget, there are ways to make cost savings across other, smaller areas which can add up to large gains. This 13-page toolkit explores maximising income and minimising expenditure across key areas such as procurement, resourcing the curriculum, premises and facilities management, catering and more.

Please note: The suggestions and recommendations contained in these toolkits are intended to provide general ideas and guidance for making budget savings within a school. These ideas are based on common practices and may not be suitable or applicable in every situation. School leaders should carefully assess their unique circumstances, including their full budget picture, needs and priorities, before implementing any changes or strategies. Honeyguide cannot guarantee the success or effectiveness of these ideas and will not be held responsible for any outcomes, financial or otherwise, resulting from their application. All decisions regarding budget management and resource allocation should be made with careful consideration, and we strongly recommend consulting with financial experts or other relevant professionals before making any significant changes.

Headteachers, principals, academy heads, executive heads or anyone with responsibility and oversight of a school budget will find this pack extremely useful, particularly if cost savings need to be made to create a sustainable budget.

This school budget cost savings toolkit pack will help school leaders answer key questions such as:

• How can schools reduce costs without compromising quality?
• How can schools maximise income and minimise expenditure?
• What are the best ways for schools to save money on their budget?
• How can schools improve financial efficiency?
• How can schools conduct a cost-saving audit?
• What strategies help schools manage rising costs?
• How can schools manage high staffing costs effectively?
• How can schools make the most of UPR/UPS teachers?
• How can schools reduce supply staff costs?
• How can schools structure staffing efficiently?
• How can schools manage SEND budgets more effectively?
• How can schools fund SEND provision sustainably?
• How can schools create in-house SEND support to reduce external costs?
• How can schools access additional funding for pupils with SEND?
• How can schools balance quality-first teaching with SEND budget constraints?
• How can schools save money on procurement and contracts?
• What are the best ways for schools to reduce energy costs?
• How can schools negotiate better contracts for services?
• How can schools get better value from catering contracts?
• How can schools reduce printing and copier costs?
• How can schools generate additional income?
• How can schools maximise the funding they receive per pupil?

You may find our other school finance and budget resources helpful too!