school finances situation in your child’s school.

[kafkesque]

Letter received today:

Updating you about school finances
I am sure you will have heard through news and topical radio/television programmes about the crises in school funding and I felt it important to update you about the situation in your child’s school.
Our school is also suffering financially and for a number of reasons. For example, the recent staff pay rises are not centrally funded, meaning we need to find thousands of pounds from this year’s budget. On the horizon, employer’s pension contributions will increase from 14% to 50% by September 2020, resulting in £140,000 to be found (annually) from our school budget. Some centrally funded support for September 2019 is promised, though not from this point onwards.
Schools are now charged for services that used to be free at the point of access. In addition, the needs of our pupils placed at The MSE continue to increase and as such, so do our costs for relevant resources (e.g. reading books, IT equipment and programmes as well as staffing and related training costs.) However, per-pupil funding levels are not keeping pace with the significant extra demands on the school. We know this funding argument is ‘won’ though have no confirmation as to whether any additional finances to support us will actually materialise.
On our doorstep, the cuts to other community services leaves vacuums, for which we find ourselves undertaking crucial pastoral work that would not otherwise be provided for our families.
If only the ‘little extras’ money promised in November’s budget could be for ‘extras’. If we cannot fundraise to meet such additional costs, we will have to make savings in other areas. Fundraising has been very successful at school, but as you can imagine, so many grants, trusts, company and private donors, do not want to spend money on school essentials like staffing, replacing toilets or worn-out flooring.
I am sure you are aware that Teaching Assistants, Teachers, Admin and Leaders at The MSE School regularly undertake unpaid overtime, though you may not be aware that this is often in excess of 30 additional (unpaid) hours per week. This is not just because of the love of the job, but to keep up with the immense demands placed on the school.
I do hope you that won’t find this pessimistic but I wanted to update you about the current situation as I do know you take a keen interest in your child’s education. We remain optimistic - the school continues to innovate and be highly resourceful.
Best wishes,

We were given this letter after the OFSTED "Good" result.

Hmmm why are they telling us though. What do they intend cutting?

Without telling us what this means for our child and us or asking for help it just seems like a bit of a rant.

I'm not defending government cuts, but come on, look back on history, since when did lack of funding ever stop schooling, before the war, after the war, look at third world countries, teachers, kids sitting in mud huts with the very basic of tools. I think schools, teachers just want a cushy number, big salaries and long holidays, they want funding for things other than books, pens, pencils, writing pads, its all about expensive computers, and top notch equipment.

How did India manage to churn out thousands upon thousands of IT professionals with meagre resources?

Here you go kafkesque they could do this

trashpresso.com/ of course the school would have no money for teaching but that won't matter as the any teachers, support staff and kids left would be working on it all day.

they want funding for things other than books, pens, pencils, writing pads

Like adequate support for students with SEN (cut), adequate access to support services for students with mental health difficulties (cut), access to a wider curriculum including art, music, drama, technology (cut), as well as adequate classroom supplies like textbooks, board markers and glue sticks.

We’re so demanding.

kafkesque

I think schools, teachers just want a cushy number, big salaries and long holidays, they want funding for things other than books, pens, pencils, writing pads, its all about expensive computers, and top notch equipment.

And the GF shows their true colours.

Clueless

In regards to India, my understanding is that far more Indian schools have fees required and a larger percentage use private tutors and cram schools. There have been several articles I've seen lately about the issues of rising fee prices and issues with government schools and struggles of many kids in India missing in education.

Most schools I know where I am are cutting TAs and those that remain are having their hours and salaries cut (we have weeks of strikes over that) and are really struggling with the growing requirements. One of the 'good' primaries near me was able to get grants for new IT equipment and internet to meet those requirements (quite basic pretty old ones), but doesn't have the funding to train teachers to use it so the guy who is responsible for maintaining the IT across a few schools - who has no teaching qualifications or experience - is being pushed to show and explain them to the teachers and the kids, including kids with SENs who are meant to be using these devices as part of the help they're supposed to be getting for their additional education needs. It's ridiculous how much basic training and equipment is unable to be done through with things as they are now and it's pretty ridiculous to act like that all that is happening because all the teachers want "big salaries and long holidays" who have far less control than those at the top who actually have most of the control over the budget and how it is used. Some headteachers and academy heads making a lot doesn't mean that is representative of everything going on in a school no more than a corporation with a CEO making ridiculous money means their workers are.

Seriously, if you think so little of those teachers that you think they are pretending not to have funds for basics for children which to me seems a heinous accusation, why send your kids to school there? You have every legal right to get the equipment and do that yourself or try to find a magical school not facing those issues right now.

We literally can't afford pencils at my school. Teachers are buying their own for their classes.
It's a fucking joke.
And at the same time we are meant to ensure that every child makes accelerated progress.

How did India manage to churn out thousands upon thousands of IT professionals with meagre resources?

"Thousands and thousands of IT professionals" might sound like a large number but it represents a small slice of the population of a country as massive and populous as India.

India's IT professionals were nearly all educated at private schools. Private schools of various kinds educate most middle class kids in India (and quite a lot of poor families' kids too, due to cut-price private schools that have become common in the past 15 years).

India's state schools are not only not turning out top-notch professionalsthey (for the most part) do not turn out people who are even capable of basic literacy and numeracy. The below link tells a typical storythere is tons of information about this online.

indianexpress.com/article/education/over-70-of-class-6-govt-school-students-cant-read-a-paragraph-assessment-survey-reveals2964111/

The reasons for this are complicated (corruption, nepotism and lack of public service mentality among many people working in schools are part of the problem), but chronic underfunding does not help. India's state schools are plagued by absenteeism among both children and teachers. Some teachers don't turn up half the time because they don't give a damn--in other cases, teachers don't turn out half the time because they are working a second job as a taxi driver or whatever due to salaries being in arrears for months on end.

I agree totally that just throwing more and more money at schools does not necessarily make them better, but there has to be a basic level of funding to get the system to function.

**
look back on history, since when did lack of funding ever stop schooling, before the war, after the war, look at third world countries, teachers, kids sitting in mud huts with the very basic of tools

Wow, so goady as well as completely ignorant of the type, and cost, of the education listed above which apparently proves that U.K. teachers just want to sit in their arses all day.

Tell you what OP - you send your kid off to walk 5 miles to and from school every day and then to sit in a mud hut with 60 other kids of various ages, and pay half your weekly salary for the privilege. That's clearly all U.K. should be providing.

www.economist.com/the-world-if/2018/07/07/universal-lessons

The extent of the failure is immense. According to a survey of three east African countries (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) published in 2014, three-quarters of pupils in the third year of primary school could not read a sentence such as: “The name of the dog is Puppy.” In rural India almost the same share could not subtract 17 from 46, or perform similar calculations with two-digit numbers. Research by the Centre for Global Development (CGD), a think-tank, suggests that in half of the developing countries for which they have data, less than 50% of women who left school after the age of 11 can read a sentence. UNESCO, the United Nations body responsible for education and science, estimates that six out of ten children worldwide (a total of more than 600m) do not meet a minimum standard of proficiency in reading and maths. The vast majority of these children are in school.

Interesting article from the Economist, which looks at education quality in developing countries (one-room dirt-floor buildings with kids sitting on the floor etc. etc.) and discusses the fact that much of the benefit that the kids are getting this is social (for example, girls are less likely to get married off at very young ages if they are in school), because in educational terms they are learning little and in some cases next to nothing. After years and years of schooling.

It's easy to see an immigrant child from, say, Nigeria performing well at school and being well supported by their parents at home, and conclude that "See, Nigeria is doing a great job of supporting kids' education with next to no resources!" But that immigrant family from Nigeria most likely came from a relatively well-off background in Nigeria in the first place, and are unusually ambitious and education-focused people in the first place--hence the decision to migrate. It creates a misleading impression of what is going on back in the home country.

Why on Earth are they going to put 50% into teachers pension pot?!? Maybe we should all get jobs there. My company puts 12% and I think that it very generous!

They’re not, baba.

But if you want to be a teacher please sign up, we are desperately short of them.

It's gf bollocks baba, the whole thread is.

Which is a shame because I’d love to see a HT’s reaction to the charity junk shop suggestion.

I think schools, teachers just want a cushy number, big salaries and long holidays, they want funding for things other than books, pens, pencils, writing pads, its all about expensive computers, and top notch equipment
Nice and goady.

The reports from the press certainly indicate that per-student funding has decreased by something like 8% in real terms since 2012. This is borne out in numbers from the IFS (page 18). But those same numbers indicate that per-student funding is still something like 70% higher in real terms than it was in 2000.

Some questions for the longer tenured teachers here: how did schools cope back in 2000? What are students getting now that they weren't in 2000 for the 70% real increase in funding? Why is an 8% drop causing such a crisis after an 80% increase? Did schools continue to budget for 5% after-inflation increases after 2012?

School funding is terrible. OP your suggested response is unhelpful at best. If you can afford to, make a donation. If you can't then donate some of your time to the PTA to help them to raise finances. Political points should be made to your local MP not the teaching staff trying to do the best they can.

how did schools cope back in 2000?

The policy of inclusion which lead to the closure of many special schools and the expectation that pupils with complex needs be taught in mainstream classrooms has put a severe strain on resources, for a start.

The introduction of league tables in the 90s and the increasing pressure to get results has led to all sorts of school improvements and interventions. Cutting funding cuts these initiatives with the expectation that results will not dip.

And there’s much more widespread use of technology in 2018 than 2000, and this costs money and staff to maintain.

user
In 2000 schools weren't responsible for half of what they are now.

Most secondaries now have SEND bases much bigger than early 2000s (shift from special education to mainstream for lots of needs).
Most secondaries are employing their own teams of additional pastoral staff, learning mentors, counsellors etc. This is largely due to increased cuts on CAMHS.
Many primaries in deprived areas near me are employing family support workers and parent engagement workers who essentially pick up the slack from cuts to social services.

It's a complex picture.

Why on Earth are they going to put 50% into teachers pension pot?!?

They're not. The employer contributions are increasing by that much from their current contribution levels. With the increase in employers NI as well....

In real terms most schools get notably less per pupil than in previous years, costs such as salaries and employer contributions have then increased way beyond the level on inflation.

Don't forget Government has lied about it's spending on education by including higher education loan fees and has been reported to office of statistics over it!

by including higher education loan fees

And private school fees!

Our school is well funded with extra left in the animal budget most years. It’s because we all pay out of pocket for the education. Sadly it’s a very small school and I doubt that keeping our children out of state education has done much to help those who do end up in state schools. Maybe if more parents to financial responsibility for their children the situation wouldn’t be so dire. I feel so sorry for families who have no other option.

*annual budget, I’m fairly certain that we don’t have an animal budget.

I fully understand that teachers are having to pay more in their pension, paid less and less each year for doing more and more.

My DC2 goes private onwards. DC1 goes to a state grammar -we pay a £500 a year 'donation' all their art,music etc equipment plus stationary and PE kit to match. A small price to pay for what would otherwise be a private school -it is essentially a school that is outstanding and delivers a private education for 'free'.