Campaign group formed to defend schools from education cuts hails impact of Camden and Haringey parents and teachers
The Haringey Fair Funding for All Schools Haringey banner (pictured) was at the forefront of the parade to Parliament Square. Credit: Fair Funding for All Schools Haringey. - Credit: Archant
A campaign group formed to defend schools from education cuts has hailed the impact of parents and teachers in forcing the government to better protect funding for students across Camden and Haringey.
On Monday Education Secretary Justine Greening pledged to give schools in England an extra £1.3bn over the next two years in an effort to “raise standards, promote social mobility and give every child the best possible education”.
Ms Greening’s announcement in the House of Commons came the day after families descended on Parliament Square as part of a national ‘picnic protest’ against the funding shortage.
According to the Institute for Fiscal studies, the extra money is more generous than promised in the Conservative manifesto in the run up to the General Election and will freeze average school budgets over the next two years.
Protecting funding for individual students appears to have been met – for the next two years at least – with Ms Greening confirming that the per pupil funding limit will be set in secondary schools at £4,800.
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A spokesman for Fair Funding for All Schools, the group which was formed in Haringey, said: “It is great to see the government finally accepts there is a need for more schools funding.
“This is an amazing turn-round from the state of delusion and denial ministers were in just a few months ago.
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“A testament to the power of our campaigning. The way we forced school funding to become a pivotal election issue sent shockwaves through the government.”
Despite the group insisting that the announcement can only be seen as “positive news”, doubts remain over the fact that the extra funding will be taken from elsewhere in the school budget, with free schools likely to be hit the hardest.
The group added: “We are concerned that this is not new treasury money.
“It will be a heroic task for the Department for Education to find savings of that order without impacting on schools somewhere down the line.
“Is it a complete remedy? Far from it.
“We need to be vigilant. We need to press the case for investing in our schools. And while we have clearly persuaded education ministers, we may still need to change minds at the treasury.”
