Commenting on the Chancellor’s spending review announcement,
Geoff Barton, General Secretary of the Association of School and
College Leaders, said:
“We are deeply disappointed that the government intends to impose
a public sector pay freeze on teachers and are hugely concerned
that this will damage staff retention.
“We understand the public spending pressures caused by Covid, but
this decision comes on top of a decade of pay austerity.
“Experienced teachers and school leaders have already seen a
real-terms decrease in their pay of 13 per cent over the past 10
years.
“This new pay freeze will result in the further erosion of their
pay following a year in which they have worked tirelessly and
under extraordinary pressure because of the Covid pandemic.
“The government asks more and more of teachers and leaders, and
then effectively cuts their pay. It should not be surprised if
staff decide to leave the profession.
“We are pleased the Chancellor has confirmed that the additional
investment in schools through to 2023 remains on track following
years of real-terms cuts.
“However, any uplift in school funding is being wiped out by the
huge cost of Covid safety measures and teacher supply cover which
the government refuses to reimburse.
“Many schools will be significantly worse off as a result of
these additional costs and it is likely that they will have to
make further cuts.”
