Kent Messenger Maidstone

This new kid in school looks ever so familiar

Prime Minister joins class to announce spending splurge

- By Joe Wright jwright@thekmgroup.co.uk

Prime Minister Boris Johnson turned up at a school in Kings Hill on Monday to announce a “level-up” in pupil funding across the country.

The Government revealed each secondary school will attract a minimum of £5,150 per pupil and each primary a minimum of £4,000 from 2021. Mr Johnson was at The Discovery School to make the national announceme­nt.

He also met pupil Tony Hudgell, a five-year-old double-amputee who was recently awarded the PM’s Points of Light award for raising £1.2m for Evelina Children’s Hospital. The Department for Education says in total, school funding is due to increase by 4% and highneeds funding by 10%, while smaller and remote schools are in line for a pledged 60% boost. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “Every child deserves a superb education - regardless of which school they attend, or where they happened to grow up.

“That is why we are providing additional funding now and for the future for every school - with those historical­ly underfunde­d receiving the greatest increase. “I want to again thank teachers, childcare workers and support staff for the brilliant work they have done throughout the pandemic, and for the preparatio­ns underway to welcome back all children from September.

“Our £1 billion covid catch-up package, on top of these increases in per pupil funding, will help head teachers support those who have fallen behind while out of school, and deliver a superb education for all children across the country.”

The government is billing the funding programme as a £4.8 billion boost nationwide

The Prime Minister promised a “big summer catch-up” last month, as pressure mounted on No.10’s failure to get all pupils back into schools. A 1,000-pupil secondary school will receive £80,000 and a 200-pupil primary school will receive £16,000 to tackle the impact of lost teaching time as a result of the coronaviru­s pandemic.

Headteache­rs can decide how best to use their schools’ premium allocation but are

‘Every child deserves a superb education regardless of which school they attend or where they grow up’

encouraged to spend it on evidence-driven approaches including small group or one-to-one tuition.

Leora Cruddas, CEO of the Confederat­ion of School Trusts, said: “We are pleased that there will be arise in per-pupil fundingin England in 2021. It is very important that there is also an increase in funding for special education needs where the sector has felt significan­t cost pressures.

“It is important that education funding is not left behind during the response to the global pandemic.”

 ?? Picture: PA ?? Boris Johnson takes control at The Discovery School in Kings Hill
Picture: PA Boris Johnson takes control at The Discovery School in Kings Hill
 ?? Pic: Tom Tugendhat MP ?? Boris Johnson meets Tony Hudgell
Pic: Tom Tugendhat MP Boris Johnson meets Tony Hudgell

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