CASH-STRAPPED Malvern schools have had a worse deal than those in the West Midlands according to the town’s MP who has pledged to fight for a better deal for teachers, pupils and parents.
Harriett Baldwin made the vow in response to a countywide call for parents to join the bid for more cash after revealing funding per pupil had fallen by eight per cent in the past eight years.
The Observer reported last week on the national Worth Less campaign and many of the county’s headteachers will make the trip to London on Friday (September 28) to lobby their MPs.
In a letter to parents and carers of students at Dyson Perrins CE Academy and Hanley Castle High School, Mike Gunston and Lindsey Cooke warned parents they cannot prevent another year of belt tightening from affecting secondary school children with larger classes, few study options and less support for the most vulnerable all now on the timetable.
The letter does recognise a new method for allocating Government money across the country has been a step towards a fairer system. However, they insist the gap between Worcestershire schools and those over the border in south Birmingham is still far too wide
Fairer
Mrs Baldwin said she will press Education Secretary Damian Hinds for a fairer deal on behalf of local headteachers who have raised the issue with her.
“Parents rightly want the very best for their children’s education and our local schools are doing a great job for them,” she said.
“It’s undeniable schools in Worcestershire have had a worse deal than similar schools in the West Midlands and I support all the measures introduced by the Department of Education to fix this imbalance and make the formula fairer.
The MP claimed funding for the average primary school class of 27 pupils is £132,000 – £8,000 higher than in 2008 – and the same 27 pupils will be funded by on average £171,000 when they move to secondary school.
Next year, schools like those in Worcestershire will attract up to six per cent more funding to address some of the historical imbalances compared to schools in Birmingham, according to Mrs Baldwin.
Independent analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies confirms real terms per pupil funding in 2020 will be 50 per cent higher than it was in 2000.
“Nine out of ten of our local schools are rated either good or outstanding and I am glad that our amazing teachers will be getting a further 3.5 per cent pay increase – there can be no great schools without great teachers,” Mrs Baldwin added.
