Elementary schools received €250 million too little from the ministry, court rules

The Ministry of Education withheld around 250 million euros from elementary schools in the second half of 2022. The court in Utrecht ruled in favor of the schools that had filed a lawsuit against this and ordered the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education to pay the amount.

The 2022-2023 school year was a transitional year. Until then, schools were paid an amount per school year, but from 2023 onwards, they were paid per calendar year. The ministry calculated that the schools received 34.55 percent of the annual amount for personnel costs until the end of the year, but according to the schools, it should have been 41.67 percent. Since five months of the year were involved, the amount paid out should have been five-twelfths of the annual amount. The judge agreed with the schools on this point.

222 school authorities brought the appeal before the Administrative Court, having lost 250 million euros. The ruling applies specifically to these school boards, which make up a quarter of all school boards in the Netherlands.

Outgoing Minister Mariëlle Paul (Primary and Secondary Education) must decide whether the ruling also impacts the other school boards. A spokesperson for the minister says it is still too early to give a definitive answer. The same applies to whether Paul will appeal against the ruling. She has "taken note of the ruling and will examine it."

The ruling will probably cause a one-off financial setback for the Schoof I Cabinet, which will take office in a week and a half. Paul will become State Secretary for Primary and Secondary Education and Emancipation.

The PO Council, the umbrella organization for elementary schools, has announced that it will discuss the implementation of the ruling with the ministry together with the schools that initiated the case. The association of public schools VOS/ABB called the compensation that has now been reversed "the great disappearing act" of the ministry.