Posted by Andy Gibbons | Filed under Uncategorized
Sutton Public Meeting on School Funding
14 Sunday May 2017
14 Sunday May 2017
12 Sunday Mar 2017
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inIt is clear that this Budget has nothing to offer existing schools.
The NAHT secretary Russell Hobby writes:
‘More than 80 per cent of school budgets are spent on staffing, so it is clear that the £3 billion of savings the government expects schools to find will result in fewer school staff.
This cannot help but have negative consequences, often for the most vulnerable. Class sizes will increase, the curriculum will narrow, training will be cut and support for struggling children will be reduced. The UK is one of the wealthiest countries in the world – how can we tell our children that there is no money to spare for them?
For school leaders watching the Budget, the anger will be two-fold: nothing is being provided for existing schools, despite the evident pressures they are under; but the government can find resources for new free schools to deliver its new grammar plans.
When the system is struggling to deliver sufficient resources for existing schools, it is fundamentally the wrong priority to allocate greater resources to schools that have not been created yet, and that will not provide help where there is the greatest need.
What could the chancellor have offered today? The National Audit Office highlights a funding shortfall of £3 billion due to the real terms cuts schools face. This would have been ambitious, but an investment, rather than a cost.
But other simpler and cheaper options were open to the Treasury. Part of the frustration from school leaders is that their costs have been rising because of actions taken by the government – rising national insurance contributions, increasing pension costs, the national living wage and, from April, the apprenticeship levy. The government is giving with one hand and taking with the other.
They have the levers to address this. Why not exempt schools from the apprenticeship levy? Or ensure all schools get the pupil premium they are entitled to through auto registering pupils for free school meals?’
Read the full article here: Philip Hammond’s 2017 Budget will be remembered as a missed opportunity for education
12 Sunday Feb 2017
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Richard Adams Education editor, The Guardian
A letter sent to all parents of secondary schoolchildren in the Liberal Democrat-controlled borough of Sutton, south-west London, states: “The future looks bleak. Next year means more expenses for schools. Inflation is increasing too. Local authority cuts mean that schools are expected to do more with less.”
The letter explains the cause of budget pressures the schools face and criticises the government and Department for Education’s claims to have protected “core schools funding” with record levels of funding nationally.
“Schools will have to consider fewer teachers, larger classes, less choice, less support for students and families, fewer opportunities, trips or co-curricular activities. In some areas of the country, schools are already cutting school hours. Others are suggesting a four-day week to reduce staffing demand and utility bills,” the letter tells parents.
The schools are unhappy at Sutton council proposals to slice 0.5% off funds it currently devolves to secondary and primary schools. That would come on top of reductions in funding for sixth-form education by central government, cuts in education services grants, and increases in wages, national insurance and pension contributions to be paid by schools.
Read more here: The Guardian
13 Tuesday Dec 2016
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inThe Government’s long-awaited and much-delayed plans for reform of school funding will not solve the funding crisis facing schools and colleges. Our organisations, representing the overwhelming majority of teachers and school leaders, believe that the Government must provide additional resources to support any changes to school funding.
The Government says it is protecting the education budget. School funding is in fact frozen, but inflationary factors mean that schools face the biggest real terms cuts in a generation. Schools and colleges are also being hit by costs relating to higher employer pension and national insurance contributions, the new apprenticeship levy and changes to curriculum and assessment. The impact of Government funding policy on high needs provision is also creating great concern, with changes to early years funding resulting in cuts in some areas and putting providers and local authorities under serious pressure.
We urgently need additional investment in school buildings to cope with increasing pupil numbers. Cuts to health, social care, welfare and local authority funding – including removal of the Education Services Grant – all affect schools. Post 16 education is in an even worse position, as these pressures come on top of large cuts in the last parliament.
We are already seeing job losses, increased class sizes and cuts to courses in our schools and colleges. Instead, we need to invest more – including in teacher pay – to respond to a crisis in teacher recruitment and retention. Any reform to funding arrangements must recognise the need for additional funding, tackle existing shortages and ensure an equitable distribution so that every child and young person has access to what they need to succeed.
Our future depends on developing the skills of our children and young people. Education is an investment in our economic future, but the Government is cutting already inadequate funding. Our organisations call upon the Government to change course and to give our schools and colleges the resources they need.
Mary Bousted, General Secretary, ATL
Kevin Courtney, General Secretary, NUT
Russell Hobby, General Secretary, NAHT
Deborah Lawson, General Secretary, Voice
Malcolm Trobe, Interim General Secretary, ASCL
How will your school be affected? Click here: School Cuts
04 Friday Nov 2016
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The NUT has today launched a national campaign against cuts to school budgets.
If the Government’s funding proposals go through almost every school in the country will have less money to pay for teachers and resources. Sutton faces cuts of £6,303,562.
You can find out how your school is affected here: School Cuts
What you can do
Our aim is to persuade the government to change its plans for school funding. Use the links on the page at School Cuts for your school to:
Posted by Andy Gibbons | Filed under Uncategorized
28 Tuesday Jun 2016
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inThe Government’s new Education for All Bill continues to show they have the wrong priorities for teachers, schools and children.
Sutton schools have had to face a 15% real-terms funding cut over the last few years and face a further 5% under the government’s so-called ‘fairer funding’ formula. Sutton already has the fourth highest number of classes with over 30 pupils in outer London, and this figure could get larger as funding is reduced.
Real term cuts in funding will have major effects on schools and teachers, whether academy or maintained. This will further erode terms and conditions, increase workload and impede pay progression for teachers.
As more schools become academies, the coverage of the national School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document and Burgundy Book will narrow and these protections will gradually wither away. This makes teaching a less attractive profession, compounding teacher shortages.
The NUT is asking the Government not to implement the real terms cuts that will affect ALL schools. Primary schools and small schools suffer disproportionately when funding is cut, and even academies will be hit hard.
UPDATE
The NUT’s three conditions to Ms Morgan for cancelling the strike are:
02 Wednesday Mar 2016
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inMembers of the National Union of Teachers at The John Fisher School have voted overwhelmingly to take strike action following a breakdown of talks with the management of the school. Teachers will strike on 8th March after being refused merit pay rises under the performance pay system.
Teachers successfully went through the appraisal process but were shocked to find that they were turned down because the school claimed it had spent the money on other things and couldn’t afford to pay.
Union representatives were told that unexpected costs and parents failing to pay £60,000 into the school fund meant that the school could not afford the pay progression of teaching staff.
John Fisher NUT Rep. Richard McKenzie said:
‘Last year teachers worked very hard to achieve the best for the boys at John Fisher School. They were assessed on the work they did and were found to be good, with some being outstanding.
We fully expected the pay progression which the school promised us under our performance scheme. But we were told by the head teacher that the school had no money to pay us.
We appealed and asked the head to reconsider, but the reply was the same. Finally, after the head failed reach agreement with union representatives, we decided to take strike action.
What we want is the salary we which is due to us – and which the school budgeted for a year ago. the teachers have fulfilled their responsibilities to full – the school must do the same.
Sutton NUT Secretary Andy Gibbons said: ‘We are told by the government that teachers will be rewarded for hard work – but this is the reality. We have consistently tried to get the school to pay the teachers the money they were promised. We go on strike as a last resort, but our members are determined to get what is their due.
‘We will continue to keep the door open for talks, but unless our members in the school are treated fairly the strike action will continue. I appeal to the Head Teacher and the Governing Body – pay your staff what they are owed and end this dispute now.’
Sign the petition at
06 Wednesday Jan 2016
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inLondon is a city full of creativity, talent and potential. Our schools and our teachers are among the best in the world. However, there are significant challenges facing London schools. Child poverty and unfit testing regimes jeopardise our children’s education, and now local authorities and London’s schools face huge budget cuts.
We believe that every child deserves the best education that our city can offer. That every parent should be able to send their child to a good school that’s close to home, that every child should be taught by a qualified teacher and that no child should grow up in poverty.
Unfortunately these ideals are under threat. Inequality in society is fuelling inequality in education. Teachers and parents are being priced out of the city, while school budgets are slashed and the subject options available to children become narrower.
In this manifesto you’ll find a series of proposals that we’re asking the next Mayor and London Assembly to champion.
Please read on, share what you find and help us ensure that every child in London gets the chance to realise their potential.
The NUT’s manifesto is here: https://www.teachers.org.uk/files/london-manifesto-16pp-a5-10327.pdf
16 Friday Oct 2015
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Assessment, exams, NUT, Schools, Sutton
The National Union of Teachers has published ‘Exam Factories? The impact of accountability measures on children and young people.’ This is a wide ranging research project that incorporates a survey of almost 8,000 teachers and case studies of heads, teachers and children.
The Government’s aim of bringing about an increased focus on English/literacy and maths/numeracy and (in secondary schools) academic subjects, has been achieved at the cost of narrowing the curriculum that young people receive.
Recent accountability changes mean that in some cases secondary schools are entering pupils for academic examinations regardless of aptitudes or interests. This is contributing to disaffection and poor behaviour among some pupils.
The amount of time spent on creative teaching, investigation, play, practical work and reading has reduced considerably and there is now a tendency towards standardised lesson formats. Pupils questioned for this study, however, say that they learn better when lessons are memorable.
Teachers are witnessing unprecedented levels of school-related anxiety, stress and mental health problems amongst pupils, particularly around exam time. This is prevalent in secondary schools but also in primaries.
Pupils of every age are under pressure to learn things for which they are not ready, leading to shallow learning for the test and children developing a sense of ‘failure’ at a younger and younger age.
Pupils’ increased attainment scores in tests are not necessarily reflected in an improvement in learning across the piece. Teaching can be very narrowly focused on the test.
The Government and Ofsted’s requirement that schools target pupils on Free School Meals with Pupil Premium money is prompting some schools to take the focus away from special educational needs (SEN) children. Accountability is discouraging schools from including SEN children in activities targeted at Free School Meals children even when children with SEN need the support more.
Accountability measures disproportionately affect disadvantaged pupils and those with SEN or disabilities. Teachers report that these children are more likely to be withdrawn from lessons to be coached in maths and English at the expense of a broad curriculum. Furthermore, some schools are reluctant to take on pupils in these categories as they may lower the school’s attainment figures. Ofsted grades are strongly related to the proportion of disadvantaged pupils in a school.
Ofsted is not viewed as supportive. It is seen as punitive and inconsistent, with the ability to cause a school to “fall apart”. In their analysis of a school, the inspectors also have a tendency not to take on board the way that individual circumstances affect outcomes.
The legacy effect of past Ofsted requirements means that these practices are still “drilled in” despite no longer being measured or required. These include the focus on marking of pupils’ work in a standardised manner and the monitoring of lesson structure.
Read the full document here:
10 Saturday Oct 2015
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inTeaching is a stressful job, not least for those new to the profession. The TUC cites reorganisations, overwhelming workloads and being expected to do more with less as factor which all increase stress.
The guide provides information on supporting individuals with mental health issues in the workplace and the practical steps that can be taken by trade union reps and employers to promote a healthy workplace.
Download the guide here: http://bit.ly/wmhd15