TEACHERS’ and heads’ unions, the NUT, ATL and NAHT, are asking every candidate in every constituency in England and Wales to promise that they will address the funding crisis in our schools, which will see schools facing cuts of up to £3 billion a year by 2020.
The unions warned: ‘All constituencies will be hit. Using the Department for Education’s funding data, our calculations show that 99% of England’s schools will lose out.’
Kevin Courtney, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: ‘Parents, pupils and teachers are seeing the devastating effects of underfunding and the largest school cuts for a generation. No one ever voted for this. School funding cannot be fair until it is sufficient and so taking £3 billion a year from schools can only lead to greater unfairness. Every candidate in every constituency needs to be aware of these figures. The NUT is calling on all parties to invest in our children and commit to reversing these cuts.’
Mary Bousted, General Secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers, said: ‘Schools are already struggling to make ends meet, cutting subjects, staff and support for vulnerable children and asking parents for money. This is only going to get worse with the extent of the cuts schools face by 2020. We urge all Parliamentary candidates to pledge to invest properly in education and not divert funding to expensive free schools or selective education which only benefit a small minority of children.’
Russell Hobby, General Secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: ‘The government expects schools to make £3 billion of savings by 2020. These reductions put the stability of the whole education system at risk, and we call on all political parties to commit to addressing this shortfall. To fund education fully and fairly, the next government must reverse the real terms cuts that schools are facing and provide enough money to make the new national funding formula a success.’
Tim Roache, General Secretary of the GMB, said: ‘Our schools are being run into the ground and children’s life chances are being trampled over by this attack on education. The hard work of school support staff is being undermined by devastating cuts that will see 99% of schools the length and breadth of the country lose out. We need to see these cuts to pupil support reversed and a genuine commitment to fund our future.’
Meanwhile, the TeachingjobsinLondon.co.uk website has warned: ‘17,645 teachers across London boroughs to lose their jobs by 2020 due to education cuts. Astonishingly, those with the highest cuts, seem to be those schools in the most deprived areas, such as Newham (1074), Tower Hamlets (891), and Southwark (808).
‘Those least affected are those in more affluent areas, such as Richmond Upon Thames (249), Kingston Upon Thames (249), and Merton (204). It was reported earlier this year that London schools will face losing up to £333 per pupil in cuts.
Justine Greening, Education Secretary, has highlighted an attempt to “rebalance” school funding, which will ultimately have a huge impact on pupils throughout the capital. However, it is not only the students whose education will be negatively impacted, but the livelihoods of teachers across the UK will be at risk.’
