Commenting on the government announcing a 3.5 per cent pay award for the coming school year, 3 per cent the next, and with schools expected to make savings to cover some of the cost, Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said:
“Pressure from the NEU has forced the government beyond its original pay and funding offer. But let us be clear: a partially funded settlement still means cuts to education, and the NEU will never accept that.
"Schools are being asked to find £460 million from budgets already at breaking point. This is the equivalent of 8,300 school staff: 3,900 teachers and 4,400 support staff. Ministers cannot claim to want more teachers while overseeing such a drastic reduction in numbers next year.
"In Makerfield, in Andy Burnham’s constituency, that means 40 schools being forced to find £866,842 collectively from their own budgets simply to meet the government’s requirement to fund part of this pay award.
"Teachers, leaders, support staff and parents know the truth: underfunding damages learning, narrows opportunity, drives staff shortages and pushes workload beyond breaking point. Investment in education is investment in the future of this country.
"At a time of rising defence spending, government must answer a simple moral question: why is there always money for conflict, but not enough for childhood?
"If fiscal rules block investment in schools, staff and children’s futures, then those rules must change. Economic credibility cannot be built on crumbling classrooms and a workforce pushed beyond breaking point.
"With inflation set to rise, members know this offer is not the decisive shift needed to reverse real-terms pay cuts since 2010 or restore the competitiveness of teacher pay.
"The government’s action on CEO pay is a start, but it is not enough. It will not be retrospective, and the waste and inequality in the academies system must be tackled through a fair, transparent and enforceable shared pay framework."