Commenting on Jeremy Hunt’s speech as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
“Once again, the Chancellor has shown that he does not care about the crisis that threatens to paralyse education in this country.
“Jeremy Hunt has done nothing to address the funding crisis in our schools and colleges. He has turned his back on the teacher and support staff recruitment and retention crisis, the record class sizes, the decrepit state of our school buildings.
“In October, the Prime Minister said that education was ‘the best economic policy’ but has not put his money where his mouth is. Jeremy Hunt says he wants a ‘high skills, high wage’ economy, but has failed to invest more in education to deliver what he says the country needs.
“The inescapable fact is that 70% of schools have less funding in real terms than in 2010. And today, Jeremy Hunt’s message is that he wants them to just keep doing more and more with less and less. And it’s just not sustainable.
“Even after the investment of £105 million for special free schools, the Chancellor plans to cut capital investment in education from £6.3 billion pounds this year to £6.1 billion pounds next year.
“We are seeing major real terms cuts in school and college funding. There are huge pay cuts against inflation for teachers and support staff, leading to an exodus from the profession. Workload is sky-high and many schools are in deficit, with class sizes at record levels and a crisis in SEND funding. The underfunding of education has created huge recruitment and retention problems, with teacher recruitment targets missed by huge amounts and widespread teacher shortages.
“While Government ministers spout platitudes about excellence and Gillian Keegan saying she is doing a ‘f****** good job’, our schools and colleges have to deal with the consequences and so do the nation’s children.
“This Government has no strategy to solve the problems in our schools and colleges or close the disadvantage gap for pupils. Child poverty has grown on their watch.
“This is the desperate last hurrah of a Government seeking to buy votes before a General Election with tax cuts and perks for their friends, rather than doing what is right for our children. Anything less than serious additional investment in schools and colleges is a betrayal of parents and young people as well as of educators.
“The NEU's preliminary ballot of teacher members in England has opened. It calls for a fully funded above-inflation pay increase, as well as funding to pay for additional staffing - and asks if members are willing to take industrial action with that aim in mind. Strike action is the last thing our members want but we can’t stand by while education is destroyed by a Government that doesn’t seem to give a damn.