CABINET members expect school governors to use the new schools funding formula as a basis to review headteacher and management team salaries.

This message came out of the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, January 15.

This means that governors need to become even more involved in the day to day running of schools.

Councillors and education officers have pointed out that where school numbers have fallen in recent years, the management team might be being paid too much.

This issue was part of the difference of opinion between the Funding Review Group (FRG) and council officers.

The FRG believed the formula is £5.5 million short of what should be the budget for the minimum core funding provision.

Officers after looking at the £5.5 million made tweaks to bring the gap down to just under £1 million.

Head of finance, Jane Thomas, said that part of the gap is due to what schools are paying as the Independent School Range (ISR) rather than what the formula expects.

Ms Thomas clarified the issue: "Schools are paying well above the ISR ranges for a number of reasons , school numbers and ranges are falling and so on.

"When we are talking about this gap of funding being £5.5 million, what they are referring to is what schools are paying, rather than what the formula delivers in funding.

"It's not a change from a previous formula to this one they are both based on the same premise but it's a difference in cost."

"It's based on pupil numbers to dictate what level of salary leadership scales would attract, that range sets the level of setting and funding."

Council leader Cllr Rosemarie Harris asked if this meant that some schools were paying much more than others for leadership costs?

Ms Thomas, added:  "Yes - and I think some of that is historical in that they have not addressed a change in their ISR and restructured the leadership team accordingly.

"The actual gap from one formula to the other was actually £20,000 which is a significant difference to what schools are paying mainly in the secondary sector."

Education portfolio holder, Cllr Myfanwy Alexander, (Independent, Banwy) said: "There's no intention in this formula to prevent governors rewarding success.

"Unfortunately we don't see a read across between high spending and success.

"There will be leaders who had their salary set when there was an additional 150 to 200 pupils at the school.

"It means there is a mismatch between the costs of management and the tasks of management.

"And I recommend that all governors should do staff reviews of their leadership teams on a regular basis.

"Looking at the role that actually exists and not one that was there five years ago but what is there on the ground.

"If this is done regularly it helps school governors understand what tasks are being asked of senior managers and makes the task of performance management of that head much simpler."

"If you are paying a head considerably over the odds you should ask at performance what that that person is doing to justify."

Cllr Alexander added: "That may mean at times having difficult discussions about staffing structures but these are discussions that we have to have if schools are to live within their means."

If  school governors do decide to look at their management teams costs, and make changes, salaries would protected for a time.

The funding formula was passed and will come in to force from April.