Schools need money from parents to stay “afloat” thanks to cuts

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Schools need regular payments from parents to stay afloat, co-founder of Fair Funding for All Schools told a protest rally yesterday.

Parents, children, teachers and hundreds of other protestors took part in the Fair Funding for All Schools march through central London. The march is part of a parent-led campaign to “fight the cuts to schools and protect all our children’s education”

Co-founder of Fair Funding for All Schools, Jo Yurky, told an audience of hundreds in parliament square that she has been told of schools that had suggested parents make monthly payments of between £20 and £50. The Guardian reported that Yurky said she was also aware of a school that had told parents a minimum one-off payment could be £250. She said such money was essential to keeping schools afloat:

“Money was so tight that they couldn’t balance their books unless they asked parents to give a regular donation on a monthly basis.”

“I’ve discovered that schools near me were asking parents for money on a direct debit basis,” she said.

“Our issue is not with the schools for doing that. Our issue is: why is there a problem? This is not a sustainable way to fund our schools. There is clearly a financial problem in our schools. And this is not a long-term solution to that.”

The campaign group is demanding the government reverse all cuts since 2015. They have argued figures from the Institute for Fiscal Studies shows that spending per pupil is going to decline by 3% between now and 2022, that would amount to a 7% reduction since 2015.

Yurky told the audience: “We want increased investment in our schools so that our young people have the skills and knowledge they need and so that our future economy can reach its full potential.”

Protestors marched through Central London with banners reading “Schools just wanna have funds”

 

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