Heads in Wales face 'sleepless nights' over rising costs at schools

HEADTEACHERS in Wales have described how they work 12-hour days, through weekends and take on extra work to top up budgets and cover for staff they can no longer afford to employ.

- ABBIE WIGHTWICK

Some have told us they are working unpaid as teaching assistants, caretakers and lunchtime supervisors because their school budget no longer runs to employing staff needed.

Others work extra hours as local authority school improvement advisers or executive heads of other schools to top up what they say are dwindling budgets.

Some are also making staff redundant and not replacing vacancies that arise. One described how she has “sleepless nights” after “burning through reserves” to pay for teaching assistants her pupils need.

Headteachers the length and breadth of Wales say there is a “funding crisis” not just caused by years of cuts in real terms and soaring costs but also what they say is a huge rise in children with additional learning needs (ALN).

Describing an “additional learning need crisis”, they say many schools cannot afford the support children with extra needs require. As a result ALN children and their peers may not be getting the education and support they need.

They were speaking out as the National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) Cymru launched a campaign for fair funding. NAHT Cymru says that £329m of funds given to the Welsh Government for education by Westminster through what's known as consequential funding is being siphoned into other areas of the devolved budget instead.

It comes as the Welsh Local Government Association has reported a predicted deficit of £137m to school budgets with scant local authority cash to cover that.