Three education unions are joining forces at the Labour and
Conservative conferences to highlight concern over the
educational impact of teacher and funding shortages.
The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), school
leaders’ union NAHT and the National Education Union (NEU) are
holding fringe events which will discuss teacher pay, school
budgets, and the rising cost of living.
The fringe events follow the government’s proposed
below-inflation pay award of 5% for most school teachers and
leaders this academic year. This will further cut pay in real
terms following a decade of pay erosion, and it comes in the
midst of a severe recruitment and retention crisis which has left
most schools struggling to fill vacancies and put teachers in
front of classes.
The government is not providing any additional funding to schools
to enable them to afford the cost of this pay award which means
that many will have to make cuts to educational provision in
order to pay the award to their staff. Unless there is an urgent
improvement in the funding settlement, this is likely to result
in larger classes sizes, and cuts to the curriculum and
extra-curricular activities.
ASCL General Secretary Geoff Barton said:
“The issues of teacher pay, recruitment and retention, school
funding, and pupil outcomes are all linked. Without adequate pay,
we cannot recruit and keep the teachers we need, and without the
money to pay them, schools will be unable to maintain current
levels of provision and educational standards will be at risk.
“Every other plan and ambition to improve standards and the life
chances of children and young people are dependent upon getting
this right. And the situation facing post-16 education is even
worse because of the total inadequacy of government funding over
the past decade.”
NAHT General Secretary Paul Whiteman said:
“School leaders are in an invidious position: they have been
given yet another real-terms pay cut at the same time as their
schools are plunged into a funding crisis through no fault of
their own.
“Based on current projections, even with this year’s pay award,
school leaders’ salaries will have lost about a
quarter (24%) of their value since
2010. They are feeling demoralised and undervalued – but worse
than that, they are finding themselves unable to provide the
level of education and support for pupils that they know is
needed, due to the massive cost pressures that keep piling on to
school budgets.
“The spiralling energy bills, inflationary costs, and lack of
funding for teachers’ pay this year means school leaders will be
forced to make cuts that ultimately cannot help but negatively
impact on the education and wellbeing of children. We urge all
political parties to listen to the profession to truly understand
the link between funding, pay, and children’s life chances, and
to commit to making the investment into education that is so
urgently needed.”
NEU Joint General Secretary Dr Mary Bousted
said:
“Teaching is a great profession. However, after years of
successive governments and numerous education secretaries,
conditions, pay and school funding have so deteriorated that it
is now one that many graduates are choosing not to enter or those
currently teaching are choosing to leave.
“Teachers’ pay has declined by around a fifth in real terms since
2010. This has had a long-term impact on recruitment and
retention of teachers which in turn has a detrimental impact on
children and young people's education.
“Government needs to show that all teachers are valued, with
the fully funded and undifferentiated inflation-plus pay increase
for which the NEU is campaigning.”
Our full briefing paper can be read here.
The fringe events, ‘Why teachers’ pay and the cost of living
crisis impact on education outcomes’, are being held at the
Labour Conference on Monday 26 September, 1600-1730, Grace Suite
2, Hilton Liverpool; and the Conservative Conference on Monday 3
October. 1800-1930. Sonata Room, Hyatt, Birmingham.
