Heads warn of school cuts
HEADTEACHERS from schools across Bridgend have issued a stark warning, saying any further cuts to funding will result in standards dropping, larger class sizes and staffing levels being hit.
HEAD teachers from schools across Bridgend have issued a stark warning to the local authority saying any further cuts to their funding will result in standards dropping among children, larger class sizes and staffing levels being hit.
Under Bridgend County Borough Council’s (BCBC) draft budget proposals schools are faced with making annual budget savings of 1%.
Asked at a BCBC scrutiny committing meeting on Wednesday, January 30, what a potential funding reduction to their schools would look like, head teachers said it would mean slipping standards, job cuts, diffi- culty in recruiting specialist teachers and the wellbeing of overworked staff at risk.
Jeremy Thompson, head teacher of Oldcastle Primary School, said: “If budgets are cut my position would become untenable as head teacher.
“It sounds dramatic but I know an awful lot of colleagues do a huge amount extra to keep their schools afloat to serve the children of this county borough.
“I don’t know how I could do anymore.
“Further cuts anywhere in the system – whether in secondary, the special or primary sector – would make many head teacher positions close to untenable because they would be unable to do the job that you pay them to do.
“If school budgets were to be cut again I’m not sure I would sit in another scrutiny committee meeting again because I’m not sure I would work in education in Bridgend.”
He added: “It’s very difficult to see where we can squeeze more without hurting senior staff, teachers, support staff, groundsmen and caretakers.
“We have gone through an unprecedented period of having to reconsider every aspect of everything we do and we are still delivering results which show improvement but how that can be sustained is a real risk – we are the lowest per pupil funded school in Bridgend, and it hurts.”
Andrew Slade, head teacher of Porthcawl Comprehensive School, said there would be an impact on standards.
He said: “Reduced funding to schools will hit staffing and specialist teachers – there will be larger class sizes and split classes, there’s little more we can do to affect that.”
And Angela Keller, head teacher of Archbishop McGrath, added: “With austerity we are all having to do more to sup- port pupils and our staff work incredibly hard, but longer term there will be a recruitment issue because we won’t be able to afford to recruit any capacity into the system.
“That means staff will be at full pace in a high stakes, incredibly accountable system and it’s going to impact on our staff and pupils.”
Meurig Jones, head teacher of Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Llangynwyd, said: “Any further reduction in budget would mean being unable to get the specialist teachers, but especially through the medium of Welsh, when there’s growth in all other authorities bar Bridgend.”
Hannah Castle, head teacher of Cynffig Comprehensive School and chairwoman of the school budget forum, said schools were “stretched to the bone”.
She said: “There’s not a lot more that we can cut.
“The reason we came into this profession is to make sure the learners get the best possible outcomes.
“Will they continue to do that if there are cuts? No, I don’t think they will.”
In October council leader Huw David warned the local authority would no longer be able to protect budgets for social ser- vices and schools after receiving a cut in its funding from Welsh Government.
The council is faced with making millions of pounds of cuts to its budget.
Committee chairman Carolyn Webster, who asked the question on funding, said councillors would be faced with making difficult decisions on the budget over the next few weeks.
Schools have delegated budgets and make choices how they spend that money.
The total amount of budget delegated to schools in Bridgend is around £89m a year.