7. What assessment has the Minister made of the financial pressures facing schools in the forthcoming year? OQ60516

We recognise the cost-of-living crisis is putting schools under significant pressure and that there are no easy answers to resolving these issues. We've prioritised protecting core front-line public services, including schools, through protecting the indicative rise for the local government settlement and prioritising funding that goes directly to schools.

Thank you for that response, Minister.

Within Mid and West Wales, the picture is bleak. As of November last year, current deficits—26 schools in Powys had financial problems, with a cumulative deficit of £3.5 million by March 2024, with the figure projected to be £7.9 million by March 2027. As I mentioned last week, expanding eligibility for the pupil development grant is one way we could think of addressing this funding, by providing more direct funding to schools. If students eligible for free school meals could continue to receive PDG funding for six more years, even if they lost their eligibility for free school meals, it would more equitably address the growing schools' budget crisis. I know you are protecting the PDG as it is at the moment, and I'm well aware of the budget challenges to the Welsh Government, but I wondered if you would consider expanding the PDG eligibility to more equitably tackle the escalating school deficit dilemma. Diolch yn fawr iawn.

I thank Jane Dodds for that question. She will know from the discussions we've had in the Chamber today and previously that the challenge that the Government has faced has been to find the resources to meet our existing programmes of support and our existing commitments, and that in itself, in the punishing context of a reducing budget from the UK Government, has meant very, very challenging choices even to meet our existing commitments. So, whereas in ordinary times we would be looking for ways in which we can extend the support that we offer—PDG is one of those elements, but there are a range of others that I've listed in the Chamber today that we are making available through the education budget. In the current climate, it simply has not been possible to do more than meet the commitments that we already have, but we will always look for ways in which we can use the budget that we have to support those who need the most support, and I hope that she would recognise that, in many other ways, the education budget has been able to do that.