Decision details

To seek approval for the proposed increase, with effect from April 2024, the Council’s charges that apply to voluntary academy conversions

That the academy conversion charge should be uplifted by 6% to £6,620 for the financial year 2024/25.

The Council applies a standard charge for each academy conversion. This charge is common within many other LAs and recognises the significant input of officer time required to undertake work in relation to academy conversions and the absence of any specific additional funding stream to support this activity within LAs.

The charge was set at £6,245 for the 2023/24 academic year, which was a 6% increase on the figure charged in the previous financial year. The charge only applies to voluntary convertors in accordance with legislative requirements and recoups a sum for the input from various departments across the Council to facilitate the academy conversion process.

The increased charge of £6620 would be applicable in cases where an academy order is issued from 1 April 2024 onwards.