School budgets in crisis


A survey on school funding by the NEU education union found that 94% of members working in local authority schools and academies were pessimistic about their schools budget prospects over the next three years.


According to more than half (55%), class sizes had risen since last year. 


And over half of the 900 respondents reported that teaching posts had been cut, with 80% reporting cuts to teaching assistant posts and 60% reporting cuts to other support staff posts. 


The impact of posts being cut has been hardest in subjects such as art, drama and PE. Meanwhile, almost two-thirds of respondents reported cuts to special educational needs provision. 


One respondent referred to maintenance cuts leading to cleaning cutbacks, and how their school was “filthy”.


Kevin Courtney, NEU joint general secretary, said the survey highlighted the “dreadful consequences“ of a lack of school funding. He said that removal of teaching and support staff “is gathering pace”. He pointed out that parents are regularly being asked for money, “subjects are being dropped from the curriculum, school trips cancelled, books and resources are not 
being replaced and class sizes are rising”. 


Courtney said the government “should be ashamed” of this list, “yet unbelievably is standing idly by and doing nothing about it”. He added that staff cuts impact on workload, and a lack of funding on teacher pay “is in turn having a negative impact on teacher recruitment and retention”.

https://www.teachers.org.uk/news-events/conference-2018/school-funding-crisis