Information for headteachers about the pupil forecasting service provided by the Development section.
The Projection Model
The pupil projection model is a system that produces annual projections of the number of pupils that are likely to attend each Derbyshire infant, junior, primary and secondary school for the next 5 to 10 years, based on current and previous trends.
Geographical information and database systems, along with data from the local health authority, school census and admissions, produce data at school level that can be grouped into a number of areas such as ward, parish, planning districts, electoral, constituencies, multi-agency teams, learning communities etc, and produces invaluable data on pupil movements and trends.
The model has been shown to project pupil numbers within the audit commission guidelines of plus or minus 1% based on primary and secondary school phases.
Use of the Data
Our Children’s Services Development team uses the pupil forecasting data for a variety of purposes; for example to assist in setting priorities for future capital building projects, identifying potential re-organisations/mergers and agreeing S106 contributions.
Our school finance section makes use of pupil forecasts in their preparation of current and future budgets for schools, identifying revenue and staffing requirements and potential issues to discuss with headteachers.
Internally, the data is made available to elected members, senior officers, 14-19 planning and commissioning team and the communications team.
Local boroughs and districts have access to the data for the preparation of their core strategy in order to identify areas for housing development.
The Department for Education (DfE) annual capacity return for all schools within Derbyshire is based on a combination of net capacity assessments and the pupil forecasting data.
School access to the data
All maintained schools can have access to their own pupil forecast data and the team also seeks close liaison with multi academy trusts to ensure joined up planning.
For further information and advice
Contact your Assistant Development Officer