It wasn’t funded! (DfE liars!)

[MrsMurphyIWish]

Am so sick of reading this: A Department for Education spokesperson said: "The offer was funded, including major new investment of over half a billion pounds, and helps tackle issues teachers are facing like workload."

0.5% was to be funded only, rest would be out of current budgets which my school is already running at a deficit. We currently are using portaloos as our toilet system doesn’t work! Our head couldn’t possibly afford to pay staff and fix our building.

A “task force” would help with work load. We don’t need another (over paid) committee to tell us what we already know - we already have so many rehashed strategies about “working smarter, not harder” under corporate speak titles. Not one strategy can put right Ofsted toxicity, dealing with suicidal pupils, dealing with starving pupils - this is what affects teacher mental health. We take the burden of other’s mental health.

Anyway, AIBU to wish the media would actually write the truth and challenge the government on their double speak?

Seemingly not.

Keegan is apparently intent on a collision course with teachers.

I honestly don't know how they have the audacity to claim the offer was fully funded when it very clearly wasn't!

Funding is in desperate need of increasing for all schools. My last and current schools now have fewer teaching assistants (I am secondary) so choices have to be made about which pupils/classes get TA support. If you have a class of 20-30 children, with a number who need extra support, one teacher and one TA is very stretched.

Resources, money to part fund trips/activities, SEN provisions, supporting deprived pupils and families... I could go on. So many things are currently relying on teachers' good will but with a huge retention and recruitment crisis, we are so overstretched that people just haven't the time and energy to do any more.

@MrsMurphyIWish I suspect this is very much out of their hands. Although if they work in the private sector this won't be something they're dealing with. They are being effected by the recruitment crisis though so makes sense the gov is 'doing something ' about that.

Gavin Williamson’s wife was a teacher and she gave it up to be a SAHM in the early 2000s. So she has no idea or input on teaching for the best part of 20 years.

Oh thank goodness! There needs to be a sarcasm font

It actually comes from the pockets of everyone else! The government doesn't actually have a magic pot of money. It's our money.

I think some people do not realise what unfunded means.

As well as cost of living increasing costs across the board, head teachers have to pay more for teachers salaries. Which reduces the pot left over

Less money for other things. Which means (just some examples):
TAs
Resources
Pastoral/Admin staff
Wider curriculum options (Can no longer offer Politics/Spanish/Sociology quals levels as cannot afford the staff)
Bigger class sizes (Year 10 Maths class of 34 anyone?)
Cleaning and maintenance staff
Welfare/Mental Health support
SEN support
Cultural opportunities
Library books
Tech/IT
Budgets for drama show/music/Choir/extra curricular activities
The time/scope/capacity to deal effectively with every day issues (behaviour/attendance/welfare)
The time/scope/capacity to celebrate achievement and success
The time/scope/capacity to nurture and develop the children who will be paying our pensions in the future, running our services, running our country.

And also, the lack of support inevitably means a teacher's individual workload increases as they are trying to pick up the slack. There is no-one in the pastoral office to chase Sebastian's attendance (again) or call Charlie's mum to see if they need support with foodbank vouchers... Their laptop is glitchy but IT are overstretched, so it takes 3 times as long to do anything in class (even take the register) which takes time away from educating them. The SENDCO is so overwhelmed Sophie has not had their EHCP reviewed in 4 years and is really struggling with the step up to GSCE work, and the strategies in place in Y7 need to be rethought....so Sophie is now being disruptive in class. Gina has expressed suicidal thoughts and is now missing from Lesson 2 - but had been in Lesson 1. You highlight it and just hope there are enough members of pastoral around to find her. She is found, but due to the lack of pastoral and welfare staff she is being looked after by a member of SLT whilst waiting for external support. You know that is the priority. But also that the SLT's schedule is now fucked.

This impacts Every. Single. Child.

The Tories are shitting on them. Every. Single. Child.

Sorry. Rant over.

But scrimping on our children's education is going to fuck us all! Who do you think is going to be your nurse/GP/Social Worker/banker/insurance broker/car mechanic in 15/20 years time?

It is like building new houses out of cardboard - because it is cheaper.

For fuck sake!

Do you want decent public services or not ?

@KnickerlessParsons I agree with you but unfortunately the government seems to have endless amounts of money for lots of other things. The outcomes of education, of the current generation of kids, will be what's funding your pensions and public services. It'll be what determines the health of the public purse. It is quite depressing that's not a priority.

This. They have money for the things that are important to them. Like giving contracts to their mates for millions, getting bugger all in return for the country.

Well, strictly speaking the funding for schools come out of tax income as well, so it is true in a sense.....

I pay tax too, so I guess I pay my own wages. I hereby give myself a pay rise!

Plenty of initiatives have not been fully funded, it's not new, and the general secretary of the NEU challenged this eloquently on one of the news programmes a few days ago.

Please remember this and other lies when you vote.

I'm not saying you don't. But it's not untrue that the wages come from tax like you were making out.

I pay rather a lot of tax, I would give teachers a wage increase. However that's not how a representative democracy works. So perhaps if people stop voting for the Tories you would see different results.

Can I ask what happens with voluntary aided schools? I believe they get 90% of their funding from the LA, and the remainder covered by say for example the Church of England. Can more than 10% of funding be provided or does it need to meet 100% as a target.

And if anyone is a HT or SLT on such a school is the shortfall of 10% being met?

This.
There is constant perpetuation on here of the myth that 'the government' has money -it hasn't -it has to redistribute what they can raise in tax or borrow for our kids to pay back.
Any government will have to do the same.
Yesterday Keir Starmer refused to say what he would do as ' is is a year away so we have to see how the economy will be then ' weasel words 'cos is not his problem right now.
It is not 'this government'
Would make more sense for the teachers to ask for a rise to be factored into the next budget round, not to expect it to be taken out of s budget already set. Or to be magicked up on the fly like petulant kids at a funfair.
I am a teacher but also a taxpayer in this country who can see that you can't just manufacture money other than by printing or borrowing more with the massive detriment to the economy and the country as a whole.

Then we need school managers who have the backbone to stand up to their employers -not teachers who have been promoted to ' head teacher' and accept budgets that can't manage.
Who don't school heads go on strike if they believe their budgets are insufficient?

@Didgerydoo
Who don't school heads go on strike if they believe their budgets are insufficient?

Funny you should say that! Seen today's news at all?

@MrsMurphyIWish I hope you're not a parent I ever have to deal with. Teachers are allowed a life outside of work. This includes being able to write on a forum in any way they want.
It's strange you're disheartened by the funding yet are making a comment that sort of sums up some of the reasons there's a recruitment shortage. Can't even post on Mumsnet without SPAG being pointed out. Seriously?

@Didgerydoo That's what schools wanted though. They started striking so they would be seen in this budget. They didn't want money magicked. Money was magicked to line the pockets of wealthy pensioners though.

I’m a teacher.

@MrsMurphyIWish I never said you weren't. I said I hope you're not a parent I have to deal with if you think teachers can't post on online forums with SPAG that doesn't meet your requirements. I don't even agree with that poster but your comment is unnecessary.

I think education is destined to be like the NHS. People are frustrated that it can't provide what people need. They start to blame the staff.

Parents expect children with send to be properly supported. They are right. It is also the law. However schools do not have the money to pay the staff to provide what is needed. Likewise mental health support. Time and time again I have patents asking for counselling for their child who is anxious or has some other emotional need. Pastoral support are overwhelmed. They are triaging the referrals. They literally cannot provide slots for all the kids on the list. The school does not have the money to employ another person. Patents are upset and annoyed. They come on here and say the school is hopeless and won't help.

Expectations are very high. The health service and send services often will tell parents to ask the school for send or mental health support. The school's budget will not stretch to provide all these services for children.