Borough’s secondaries ‘face major funding crisis’

The budget for all schools in the borough could be cut by more than £17m by 2014-15, according to a respected think-tank.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has estimated that primary schools in Rotherham would receive between £3.2m and £4.7m less – 3.8 per cent to 5.5 per cent – and secondary schools between £11m and £12.5m less – 11.8 per cent to 13.4 per cent.

The IFS warns this would mean Rotherham is facing one of the largest funding cuts for secondary schools in the country.

The MP for Rother Valley, Kevin Barron, has demanded an answer in Parliament from Education Secretary Michael Gove on the issue.

Mr Barron said: “The findings of the IFS on Rotherham indicate that secondary school education will take a spending cut of between 11.8 per cent and 13.4 per cent. Given that Rotherham is still in the highest 20 per of deprived areas in this country, what has happened to the concept of ‘We’re all in it together’?”

In response to this, Mr Gove said that during this Parliament Rotherham would benefit increasingly from the pupil premium – a £2.5bn fund which will see schools given money for every pupil they take on who qualifies for free school meals. He also said the IFS was speculating about the size of the funding cut.