SCHOOLS in Essex are sitting on more than £46million of unspent funds, it has been revealed.

Essex County Council is urging schools to spend the cash or face having it taken away.

However, headteachers and MPs want County Hall to allow schools to keep the cash to pay towards building schemes.

Most primary, secondary and special schools ended the last financial year with thousands of pounds in their bank accounts.

The county’s 470 primary schools are sitting on a total of £26.9million, the 71 secondary schools have £17.2million and its 17 special schools have £1.9million.

The Gilberd School in Colchester had £796,520 in the bank at the end of the financial year – more than any other school in the county.

Rob Pollock, the school’s business manager, explained he expected most of the cash to be spent by the end of the school year. He said more than £420,000 of the money would be spent on capital projects – one-off schemes like buildings.

He added: “The school should have the opportunity to take its reserves and use it to future-proof the site.

“We have a three-year capital project plan. What we don’t want to do is make knee-jerk decisions.

“It seems like a lot of money, but if a school is looking forward and making the right choices, it will use those resources well.”

He added the High Woods school has embarked on projects to re-roof two teaching blocks, improve the student entrance and replace boilers. The school will be allowed to keep back 5 per cent of its £6.3million budget at the end of the financial year.

Mr Pollock said the school recognised having too much in reserve was a liability, but he expected that figure to drop by the end of the year, and that no cash would need to be clawed back by the county council.

Headteachers across Essex also defended the figures, saying the difference between a school year, which runs from September to August, and a financial year, April to April, gives a false impression of wealth.

Essex County Council said legislation brought in by the previous government means it can claw back excessive sums of money from schools – and then redistribute it to others.

A spokesman for the council said: “The council will exercise its powers to claw back funds from those schools whose unspent balances are in excess of the limits prescribed.

“The money will go into the dedicated schools grant fund, and made available for redistribution to all Essex schools.”

However, North Essex MP Bernard Jenkin said schools should be allowed to keep the cash.

He said: “I think schools should be encouraged to build up reserves so they can take over capital projects, which central government will not be able to afford in the years ahead.

“During the last Parliament, I fought a campaign to stop the previous government clawing back revenue from schools. If we want schools to take responsibility and run themselves, they must be able to build up reserves.”

Emma Boon, campaign manager for the Taxpayers’ Alliance, also warned the county council against taking the money away.

She said: “I agree schools shouldn’t be sitting on huge sums of money, but I would not like to see schools spending that money needlessly.

“It has to offer incentives for schools to spend money in a way that is of best value to taxpayers, not to just say any money that is not spent will be clawed back.”