Secondary schools facing a ‘perfect storm’ of pressures, headteachers’ union warns

SECONDARY SCHOOLS in England are facing a “perfect storm” of pressures that could have severe consequences for children, headteachers have warned.

Budget cuts, changes to exams, problems recruiting teachers and Brexit are causing major upheaval, according to the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT).

The union is also expected to argue against Government proposals to expand grammar schools at its annual conference this weekend.

Speaking ahead of the Telford meeting, general secretary Russell Hobby said: “The combination of challenges facing secondary schools and their students has never been greater.

“Many school leaders are concerned about maintaining high standards in the face of simultaneous upheaval on so many fronts. It’s a perfect storm.

“The Government is loading more uncertainty onto the secondary system than ever before. There is a real risk it will break.”

Mr Hobby repeated warnings that schools are facing “unacceptable levels of financial pressure”, with an NAHT survey showing that 72 per cent of headteachers believe that school budgets will be unsustainable in two years’ time.

“This is a result of the Government’s choice to freeze spending and keep it at 2010 levels for each pupil. The 2010 cash isn’t going as far as it used to. You can’t expect it to. But the Government is flatly refusing to admit the reality.”

Ministers have argued that school funding is at record levels, and that this will increase further as pupil numbers rise. Outgoing NAHT president Kim Johnson attacked suggestions that schools need to make efficiency savings.

“It’s quite insulting to have ministers say to you ‘you need to renegotiate your photocopying contract, perhaps think about the paper you’re getting in, club together with six other schools and you’ll get it cheaper’.

He said that his school, Bradfields Academy – a special school in Kent – spends 90 per cent of its budget on staffing. “Changing those procurements is not going to impact in the way in which I can retain staff. I’m going to have to make redundancies.”

Schools are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit and retain staff, the NAHT said.

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