Jordanhill School Budget Review 2025/26: equality impact assessment

Screening

Policy Aim

To complete the annual review of Jordanhill School’s grant funding by 31st March 2025, which aims to increase the level of funding granted to the School in the 2025/26 financial year.

Jordanhill School (“the School”) has a unique status as the only mainstream grant-aided school in Scotland, and it is directly funded by a grant from the Scottish Government via the Jordanhill School Grant Regulations 1988. The Scottish Government is responsible for providing 100% of the funding for the School. The current funding arrangement arose in 1988 after the Scottish Office agreed to step in to ensure the School remained open after it was decided the School could no longer be funded by the teacher training budget.

The School is a registered charity which is managed by the School Board.

It is an all-through primary and secondary school serving the local area of Jordanhill, and parts of Broomhill and Scotstoun. The School roll is 462 primary and 590 secondary pupils.

The Scottish Government aims to fund education at the School as fairly as possible, so that pupils neither benefit, nor are penalised, by its unique funding arrangement compared to their peers attending local authority schools.

This annual review contributes to the National Outcomes for:

• Education – ensuring pupils at the School are well educated, skilled and able to contribute to society
• Fair Work and Business – ensuring the School provides fair work for all its staff, with pay that is in line with local authority schools.

Who will it affect?

Scottish Government policy is to seek to treat the School equally to a local authority school, with no advantage or detriment.

The increased revenue and capital grants awarded to the School for the 2025/26 financial year cover costs incurred by the School, which include staffing costs; building maintenance costs; energy costs; and capital boiler replacement works.

Scottish Government will ensure pay to teachers, support and manual staff is in line with the pay agreements reached for local government staff in order to ensure equity. Resource and capital grants are awarded to the School and the conditions of the grants require for the School to comply to Fair Work conditions, including meeting the costs of the real Living Wage and providing access to effective workers’ voice channels. In addition, as part of any grant award the School will also be asked to commit to the additional desirable Fair Work First criteria.

The funding will guarantee the continuation of the School, positively impacting pupils’ wellbeing and experience of education by ensuring pupils attending can continue to feel supported.

The grants will also support the continued maintenance of the school estate to ensure building conditions are maintained according to building standards, providing assurance on the safety of the pupils and staff attending the School.

What might prevent the desired outcomes being achieved?

Good communication and engagement with the School throughout the budget review process is key in order to ensure the grants awarded are sufficient, fair and in line with any grants issued to local authorities in relation to schools.