SCHOOLchildren educated in Dorset face a massive funding gap – but a fight is on to get them more money.

Dorset Council only receives £4,682 per pupil from the government, compared with a national average of around £5,083 per pupil, rising to £6,200 in London.

Local authorities which have similar shortfalls are members of the pressure group f40 to campaign for a new system.

Now Dorset Council and f40 have cautiously welcomed the announcement of a second stage of consultation.

They hope it will ultimately result in more cash for children in Dorset when a new funding mechanism is introduced, which may take several years.

A council spokesman said: “We are cautious in welcoming change because we still do not know what it will mean in monetary terms. However the government has listened to concerns raised in the first consultation and our view is that the current mechanism is unfair.”

f40 argues the current system does not properly recognise problems with staffing costs, old buildings and rural poverty.

Chair Ivan Ould said: “The current system is opaque, full of anomalies and is unfair. We are pleased that we have a clear recognition of the justice of our long campaign. However there is some disappointment the timeframe for change may be slow.”

f40 believes that most local authorities suffered a cut in their education budget of around five per cent during 2011 to 2012, once all the relevant factors had been taken into account. Other councils in the f40 group include Devon, Kent, Stockport, Warrington and Worcestershire.