SCHOOLS in Bromsgrove will lose £1.3 million from their budgets by 2020, according to a report which has been blasted by the government as misleading.
District councillor Peter McDonald has sent a letter to every headteacher in Bromsgrove inviting their school to join the national ‘Save Our School’s’ campaign on Thursday (March 22), in protest against the 'cuts'.
Every school that takes part will receive a free banner detailing the alleged losses at their school, as formulated by the website schoolcuts.org.uk.
The website claims Bromsgrove schools will lose a combined £1.3m, but the Department for Education (DfE) says they would in fact attract an extra £2.2m under the national funding formula.
Cllr McDonald said: “Every child should have the right to access quality education in an equal and child-friendly environment, allowing them to reach their fullest academic potential.
“Cuts to school budgets have long started to take effect and have dire consequences for the education of our youth and for the sustainability of our schools.”
The website has been set up by the National Union of Teachers (NUT), the National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) and education union ATL.
Figures are calculated by using funding allocations for 2015/16 as the baseline, and take into account per-pupil funding, the national funding formula, and the estimation for inflation.
But a DfE spokesman questioned the report.
She said: “The campaign’s calculations are thoroughly misleading, and ignore the fact that under our national funding formula, funding is based on the needs and characteristics of each individual school.
“We are investing an additional £1.3 billion in school funding, over and above existing plans, with core schools funding rising from almost £41 billion in 2017-18 to £43.5 billion in 2019-20.
“There are no cuts in funding. Every school will attract an increase in funding through the formula from this year, and in 2019-20 all secondary schools will attract at least £4,800 per pupil, and all primary schools will attract at least £3,500 per pupil.”
More than 100 West Midlands schools have agreed to take part, but cllr McDonald has received no replies from schools in Bromsgrove.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here