School funding cuts approved (From Evesham Journal)
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Council chiefs vow to fight for better deal
1:16pm Thursday 18th October 2012 in News By Tom Edwards
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OPPOSITION: Demonstrators outside County Hall today (42157101)
CUTS to school funding across Worcestershire have been controversially approved – with the worst-hit facing reductions of up to eight per cent next year.
The county council has agreed to adopt a new Government formula for the 2013/14 year, which means drastic reductions for mainly rural schools.
The cabinet admitted “there will be winners and losers” under the cuts, but said it was reluctantly following instructions from the Department for Education in simplifying the grant awards process.
But the authority has stopped short of agreeing the same system for the 2014/15 academic year, and says it will have more time to lobby the Government on future funding arrangements to try and get a better outcome.
As the Worcester News revealed last week, some schools face cuts of up to 40 per cent unless the county fights for a better outcome.
The only thing stopping cuts of up to 40 per cent being implemented now is a minimum funding guarantee (MFG).
Councillor Adrian Hardman, council leader, said: “Twenty years ago we were mid-table in a league table of school funding in the country – now we’re virtually bottom.”
For the full story and reaction, see tomorrow's Worcester News.
Comments(52)
More Tea Vicar
says...
2:08pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Walker, Baldwin - come on, let's have some comment from you.
This is YOUR government, and you're staying in it.
How dare these people do this? They are part of the government party. They can't deny responsibility. But they will.
And still Ms Haines draws her mega-salary, and our money gets wasted on the South Worcs 'Development' Plan, and salaries for the parasites involved.
Mrfade
says...
2:13pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Don't forget the predominantly Tory CC cabinet. They are not concerned to waste allegedly £1 billion of council tax payers money on a mass burn incinerator that is not needed.
Karl Hunderson
says...
2:28pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Frank13
says...
3:16pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Rural schools have suffered from a general decline in pupil numbers. The balance between sustaining local communities and having large enough schools to provide a wide enough curriculum has been an issue for many years.
Regarding funding generally, some of the posters seem to think we are still in the 'boom' years when we are not. Funding will be tight for many years.
Jabbadad
says...
3:44pm Thu 18 Oct 12
What we need over this issue is to have cross-party support over these children who are our futures and show some political decency.
I hope that Harriett and Robin are rewarded come Election times.
induby
says...
4:22pm Thu 18 Oct 12
typical Tories again!, you increase the age limit that children have to stay in school from 16 to 18 compulsory, yet reduce the funding! how can that possibly make sense?... MORE FULL TIME CHILDREN ...LESS FUNDING????
what planet are you people on?
And when parents try to make things better for their kids by creating free schools in the area they are denied by the government.
Then the government change the GCSE's so that 1000's have to retake this year
And now they are changing the format of these qualifications.
absolute disaster!!!
GET THE TORIES OUT OF THIS COUNCIL!!!
timevans
says...
4:56pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Frank13
says...
5:26pm Thu 18 Oct 12
The County has subsidised small rural schools at the expense of larger ones for some years and now the government has changed this. There will be 'winners' as well as loser schools. There is a 'minimum funding guarantee' that no school will lose no more than 1.5% and I learned from Robin Walker MP that this will be extended to future years. I don't think cuts of 40% or even close to that are correct.
namcap
says...
5:29pm Thu 18 Oct 12
uptonX
says...
5:56pm Thu 18 Oct 12
namcap
says...
6:23pm Thu 18 Oct 12
timevans
says...
6:56pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Its a harsh reality that spending can only be financed by 3 things. Tax (which stiffles growth). borrowing (which is no longer available) and printing money (which we're reluctantly doing to prop up the system but dare not do anymore) In the old days we used to steal our wealth from the colonies, I suggest that option is also closed to us
Hack
says...
7:02pm Thu 18 Oct 12
MRS. S
says...
7:04pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Some village schools will be taking cuts of nearly 40% over the next two years.
The " 'minimum funding guarantee" is not true! We have gone over the numbers many times and they really dont add up.
Most of these small school have Good and Outstanding Ofsted reports. They are also the heart of most of the small villages.
Local to me, your talking about closing 17 schools. They cannot afford the cuts. Where will all those children go? How will they travel to school? How can the already oversubscribed schools in the bigger towns take more children.
Its going to be horrendous. Im very worried and desperately saddened after todays meeting.
katharinesim
says...
11:07pm Thu 18 Oct 12
cbeardwood
says...
11:30pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Oh dear whatever went wrong!!
spider666
says...
7:20am Fri 19 Oct 12
Arthur Blenkinsop
says...
8:20am Fri 19 Oct 12
namcap wrote:Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!
MJI
says...
8:24am Fri 19 Oct 12
spider666
says...
8:29am Fri 19 Oct 12
Arthur Blenkinsop
says...
8:33am Fri 19 Oct 12
MJI wrote:I hear Tony Blair is down to his last few million - perhaps he could chip in!
Where is the money coming from?
truth must out
says...
8:34am Fri 19 Oct 12
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Wat a load of b***s.........I was doing really well under Labour. Since the Tories got to power I have been made redundant and lost my child tax credits.My wife's job is now under threat thanks to the savage cuts of this bungling Tory government........so
namcap wrote:Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!
oner they get voted out the better.
SMC73
says...
9:11am Fri 19 Oct 12
Equally only after the fight had been lost, did Mrs Baldwin "get involved" and that, as usual, was purely for a goodwill publicity photo shoot!
Yes, tough decisions need to be made, but not at the expense of jeopardising future generations.
And the comments and generalisations voiced against teachers (Messrs Namcap and uptonX) are, shall we say, a little misguided at best.
Jabbadad
says...
9:17am Fri 19 Oct 12
So by all means blame the world economic down turn on the previous government, then ask yourself ignoring the false War in Iraq, since all politicians voted to enter Iraq, just as they are content to still commit our brave Men & Women into Afghanistan without adequate equipment, and gain solace from announcing in Parliament the names of those still being killed by Terrorists, was it worse or better from 1997?
induby
says...
9:18am Fri 19 Oct 12
I'm not defending labour!, but I don't think it would of mattered who was in government when the recession hit, the fact is the result would of been the same, just like plenty of other countries in the world who didn't fair well, irrespective of who was in charge and what they did.
However the conservatives came in with the promise that they were going to fix it all! they were going to reduce the deficit, reduce borrowing, produce more growth in the economy and make work pay and many, many more promises that they have not only not delivered/kept but in fact if it is worse than ever!,
why did they stop taxing the rich? saying they didn't need the pittance it made for the economy??, yet take away from the disabled,elderly,edu
cation,NHS and more ???,
why when children in this country ,live in poverty and families struggle to make ends meet after working all the hours god sends ..... does this government not only pay more money than any other country in the world to vaccinate children in places like India they also give them 40 million in aid?
The fact is normal people ( you know the majority of us who don't earn £25,000 +) are worse off than we have ever been in our lives and yet the rich are better off than they have been in years.
I'm getting tired of watching the news every morning and reading the paper everyday to hear of more and more incompetence and failures by the conservatives.
In just the last 2 days alone we have had..... local cuts to school funding, Cameron telling people about forcing energy companies to give people best deal,which was lies!, thousands of disabled people loosing out because of new benefit system,the Andrew Mitchell shame! and more expenses scandal as MP's are renting there government funded homes to other MPs who use government funds to pay that!! effectively making the taxpayer pay twice on the same property at the same time (and I can guarantee we are not talking a few quid here).
Arthur Blenkinsop
says...
9:19am Fri 19 Oct 12
truth must out wrote:Presumably you worked in local government then?
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Wat a load of b***s.........I was doing really well under Labour. Since the Tories got to power I have been made redundant and lost my child tax credits.My wife's job is now under threat thanks to the savage cuts of this bungling Tory government........so oner they get voted out the better.namcap wrote: This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
I remember the labour governments of the 60s and 70s - they largely ruined the countries finances too. And, why do you expect someone else to help foot the bill for your children? ie. why should my hard-earned money go to help fund your kids?
pronstar
says...
9:41am Fri 19 Oct 12
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Typical Tory, doesn't want to pay for the health or education of others because they are already paying for their own.
truth must out wrote:Presumably you worked in local government then?
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Wat a load of b***s.........I was doing really well under Labour. Since the Tories got to power I have been made redundant and lost my child tax credits.My wife's job is now under threat thanks to the savage cuts of this bungling Tory government........so oner they get voted out the better.namcap wrote: This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
I remember the labour governments of the 60s and 70s - they largely ruined the countries finances too. And, why do you expect someone else to help foot the bill for your children? ie. why should my hard-earned money go to help fund your kids?
induby
says...
9:53am Fri 19 Oct 12
That has got to be the most stupid statement I have ever heard!
we all pay into a big pot and its divided,its the simplest and fairest way we could all say that some part of what that money goes on does not benefit us directly!
E.g,1, I have never been sick a day in my life why should I pay for the NHS.
2, I don't go out after dark why should I pay for street lighting?,
3, I have never needed the police for anything why should I pay there wages?.
4,I've never had a fire why should I pay for fire services?.
5,I'm never going to be unemployed at any point in my life why should I pay national insurance contributions?.
6,Ive never used a train why should any of my tax subsidise the railways?
OR YOURS,I have never been to school or had children who have.. why should I pay for education???
IDIOT!!!!!
Landy44
says...
10:24am Fri 19 Oct 12
What I do have a problem with is the lack of equality of the cuts. I do not see that "deprived areas" should get more investment. The investment should be level across the board according to the number of pupils in a school.
That probably means we need (regrettably) to consolidate some rural schools (Upton Snodsbury was on the news a lot yesterday. Flyford Flavell, and Pinvin are also within spitting distance - do we NEED three schools that close together?) to achieve some economies of scale. It's not something I'd be happy about, but it's a logical step given the economic reality.
The government cuts overall are overdue, not deep enough and most importantly of all - are in the wrong places! They need to cull some senior and middle management in virtually every public sector body and stop hitting the people at the coalface so hard! Ask yourself - who decides where the cuts happen? Turkeys don't vote for Christmas do they?
More Tea Vicar
says...
10:53am Fri 19 Oct 12
truth must out wrote:I'm not speaking up for the Tories, but in fairness to them, considering we are in a crisis, there haven't been many redundancies. Redundancies can happen at the best of times, as I know from my own experience. They can't always be blamed on the government.
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Wat a load of b***s.........I was doing really well under Labour. Since the Tories got to power I have been made redundant and lost my child tax credits.My wife's job is now under threat thanks to the savage cuts of this bungling Tory government........so
namcap wrote:Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!
oner they get voted out the better.
Unless you were in local government, of course. But local govt did expand, at the expense of the tax payer and to the detriment of the economy, under Labour.
I wish you luck with your job hunting, though. Apart from certain people at the top of local government, I wouldn't wish unemployment on anyone.
gemma6
says...
11:33am Fri 19 Oct 12
uptonX wrote:I wonder why the country isn't over run with trainee teachers with those kind of benefits? Oh, I know, because it's utter rubbish!
The coalition government are absolutely right to make brave decisions like this to try and fix the education disaster they inherited after years of left wing idealistic nonsense. The education standard of UK school leavers has dropped dramatically in recent years, this must be addressed, something, thankfully,Gove is brave enough to do. Many UK teachers seem to live on a different planet with their excellent pay, job security, huge pensions yet they work less than 200 days a year, rush home at 3:31 each day, and are always up for a strike. Rather than let them carry on with their distorted view of reality and their spitting "sack the tories" mantra lets just sack the lot, our kids deserve better.
I work in education having worked twenty odd years in the private sector and I can tell you I have never worked so hard or for so many unpaid hours.
I have yet to see a teacher leave before 5.30 (armed with a pile of marking for the evening), many of whom have been in since 6 am.
Go into a school or college and see for yourself, uptonX before you make such sweeping, inflammatory statements.
Arthur Blenkinsop
says...
11:34am Fri 19 Oct 12
Landy44
says...
11:37am Fri 19 Oct 12
@Arthur Blenkinssop - I wouldn't wish unemployment on anyone and I sincerely hope your fortunes change soon, however (and I wouldn't stick up for any UK politician or goverment, they're all as bad as one another) going back to a labour government like the last one will be the nail in the coffin for this country. Things might have appeared to be going well, but the reality was they were maxing out the credit card!
As far as the current government is concerned, they're supposedly inflicting "austerity" on us to pay off the deficit.
The deficit is the amount of the credit card minimum monthly repayment we can't afford to pay! As hard as it is, lets not kid ourselves that we're suffering austerity when the debt is still going up! It's going to get far worse before it gets better. Any action any flavour of UK government takes right now will just be "rearranging the deckchairs on the titanic" - because that's what politicians do! They don't have the answers to the countries problems, so we should stop looking to them and start finding our own solutions.
induby
says...
2:28pm Fri 19 Oct 12
I understand your point, but the fact is despite all of these "austerity measures" , we borrowed more as a country this August than ever before!.
what really frustrates me is the money the government is just throwing away!
it just cost the people of this country 40 million pounds because of the failed rail line bid,which the government have admitted was their incompetence,just imagine how far that 40 million could of gone! resources for schools or facilities for disabled or supporting children's centres's, but no, that money just got thrown away!.
And why when we are in so much trouble do they stop taxing the rich so much?,
I can tell you why, because the conservatives are rich and don't like paying taxes, so they stopped it for themselves not for me, not for the country, for themselves!
I do agree we need to take austerity measures as a country, but as far as i'm concerned the measures being taken are the wrong ones, targeting the wrong area's of society.
there are lots of other places that the money could be saved from and for that matter, made from!.
did you know this conservative government awarded a contract worth billions for making trains to a German company when there was a perfectly good UK company bidding to do the same thing!, they gave the much needed work away!, this country needs investment and people need jobs and this government goes and gives it away.
its so frustrating!
namcap
says...
4:31pm Fri 19 Oct 12
namcap
says...
4:48pm Fri 19 Oct 12
gemma6
says...
5:23pm Fri 19 Oct 12
namcap wrote:Do most of the population then take their work home and continue until the early hours? I expect some do and expect many don't. As I said, I worked in the private sector for many years and am in a position of being able to compare the two. I get sick of reading about the cushy life that teachers supposedly have and how everyone else works so much harder. This simply is not the case. By the way, I am not a teacher and do not get 13 weeks holiday and neither do the teachers where I work.
Hang on gemma6, don't most of the working population start at 6am and finish around 6pm. It's the norm for most of us. Oh, but we don't get the 13weeks or more holiday. Four weeks if were lucky. Take a reality check!
gemma6
says...
5:41pm Fri 19 Oct 12
namcap
says...
6:43pm Fri 19 Oct 12
gemma6
says...
6:53pm Fri 19 Oct 12
namcap wrote:That's right Namcap, the children get more than 13 weeks. Do you really believe the teachers do too? They may not be in school or college but that doesn't mean they are not working.
Yes you're right about the holidays. I have just checked my childrens term dates for 2012-2013 and it is more than 13 weeks!!
Hack
says...
7:08pm Fri 19 Oct 12
legsofstone
says...
10:12am Sat 20 Oct 12
Jabbadad
says...
10:57am Sat 20 Oct 12
I see so many modern mums who allow their kids to charge around the shops / supermarkets screaming,sliding and shouting without any form of correction from their mums.
Just this week there was a little lad about 4 years old who screamed all the way around the supermarket for some 20 minutes again without any words from his mother to him or his little sister who was running around the fixtures. I did hear his mother say to another elderly lady that he (her son) was always the same in shops. What an admission? And he is soon on his way to some lucky teacher.
green49
says...
7:14pm Mon 22 Oct 12
October 21, 2012 6:28 am - author: James Delingpole
Treating Islam with special reverence is cultural suicide and just plain wrong
My brilliant niece Freya was talking to my brother the other day about the religious education curriculum at her predominately white, middle-class state school in a pretty English cathedral city. She happened to mention ‘Mohammed, Peace Be Upon Him.’ ‘Eh?’ said my brother. ‘It’s what we’re taught at school. After we mention “Mohammed” we have to say “Peace be upon him”.’
from a leading journalist at the Spectator.
WHO SANCTIONED THIS?
BJK
says...
11:01am Wed 24 Oct 12
ushmush83
says...
1:51pm Wed 24 Oct 12
truth must out wrote:Oh it's all about you is it? I didn't realise, sorry.
Arthur Blenkinsop wrote:Wat a load of b***s.........I was doing really well under Labour. Since the Tories got to power I have been made redundant and lost my child tax credits.My wife's job is now under threat thanks to the savage cuts of this bungling Tory government........so
namcap wrote:Presumably you mean, the most selfish government since the last one, the one that broke the country, the one that spent every last penny without achieving anything worthwhile whatsoever, the one that left this unfortunate government such a hell of a task to do, that whatever they do, they will be slated by someone!
This government is the most selfish I have ever known., oh apart from the last conservative lot. They do no favours for the vast majority of hard working people, just looking after their own. Come on everybody get out and vote next time and kick them out!!
oner they get voted out the better.
ushmush83
says...
2:00pm Wed 24 Oct 12
gemma6 wrote:Lie, lie, lie. First of all, it is littered with trainie teachers. There are loads of people who want to become a teacher! Secondly, I know a number of teachers, and they spend most of the many holidays twiddling their thumbs. Besides, working until 5.30pm? Crikey, that calls for a strike huh??
uptonX wrote:I wonder why the country isn't over run with trainee teachers with those kind of benefits? Oh, I know, because it's utter rubbish!
The coalition government are absolutely right to make brave decisions like this to try and fix the education disaster they inherited after years of left wing idealistic nonsense. The education standard of UK school leavers has dropped dramatically in recent years, this must be addressed, something, thankfully,Gove is brave enough to do. Many UK teachers seem to live on a different planet with their excellent pay, job security, huge pensions yet they work less than 200 days a year, rush home at 3:31 each day, and are always up for a strike. Rather than let them carry on with their distorted view of reality and their spitting "sack the tories" mantra lets just sack the lot, our kids deserve better.
I work in education having worked twenty odd years in the private sector and I can tell you I have never worked so hard or for so many unpaid hours.
I have yet to see a teacher leave before 5.30 (armed with a pile of marking for the evening), many of whom have been in since 6 am.
Go into a school or college and see for yourself, uptonX before you make such sweeping, inflammatory statements.
BJK
says...
8:38pm Wed 24 Oct 12
Jabbadad
says...
10:48pm Wed 24 Oct 12
ushmush83
says...
9:41am Thu 25 Oct 12
BJK
says...
11:36am Thu 25 Oct 12
t
MrsStJohns says...
1:26pm Thu 18 Oct 12
Hang your heads in shame, your silence is deafening.