Funding formula plan ‘will devastate Hackney schools’, NUT rages ahead of public meeting

Deputy Mayor Anntoinette Bramble, who will speak at next month’s public meeting about the changes, has been a major critic of the new funding formula

Hackney schools face the prospect of some of the worst cuts in the country as a result of plans for a new education funding formula, the local branch of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) says.

Education staff and Labour politicians locally are furious at the plans, which they say will disadvantage inner city schools because of more funds being allocated to rural areas.

A league table of funding cuts of 533 parliamentary constituencies has been published which appears to show Hackney’s two constituencies as, respectively, the third and fifth most worse off in the country.

Education Secretary Justine Greening said the new national funding formula for schools would resolve “unfair” and “inconsistent” funding levels.

“Our proposed reforms will mean an end to historical unfairness and underfunding for certain schools,” she was reported as saying earlier this month.

Hackney NUT has called a meeting for Tuesday February 7 at 5.30pm at The Urswick School at which Deputy Mayor Anntoinette Bramble and NUT general Secretary Kevin Courtney will speak.

The meeting is open to all teachers, parents and the wider community.

Jamie Duff, from Hackney NUT, said: “Existing budget pressures mean we are already seeing Hackney schools having to lay off support staff, charge for music lessons, trips and sport.

“Schools are not replacing teachers. Add to this the cuts from the new funding formula and we will see schools struggling to maintain the high quality of education that the children of Hackney deserve.

“The government are claiming this is merely a fairer redistribution of funding from places like Hackney to areas out of London but in reality this an attempt to cut education funding across the board – 98 per cent of all schools in the country will see their funding cut.

“This is levelling down not levelling up. The government is trying to distract people from the truth by dividing us – pitting London against the rest of the country. The government’s proposals will devastate Hackney schools.”