We all know that schools in West Sussex receive less funding than other areas in the country, which has resulted in school budgets being strained and savings having to be found.
As you know, I have been working with my West Sussex parliamentary colleagues to lobby the Secretary of State for Education for additional funding for West Sussex schools. I am pleased that our lobbying resulted in a new funding formula which secured additional funding for West Sussex. However the changes still left West Sussex unfairly funded compared to other regions and so the fight continues.
It is really important to have real life examples of the struggles that schools are facing in order to be able to show the Secretary of State for Education exactly what is happening in our schools and to make him aware of the urgency of the matter. With this in mind, I organised a series of roundtable meetings for the Chairs of Governors earlier in the summer to discuss the school funding situation. I am particularly grateful for those governors and heads who subsequently sent me more detailed information about the impact budget constraints are having on your school as requested.
I have been working on this information and as promised I have now collated that information into a detailed letter which I have sent to the Education Secretary Damian Hinds. I have attached a copy of that letter below.
I have set out in my letter examples of what the lack of funding is doing to schools and what should be done to rectify the situation. I have suggested developing a Coastal Communities Challenge, similar to the London Challenge launched in 2003, to recognise the special funding requirements of coastal schools. The London Challenge saw a massive improvement in London schools along with additional funding. I think this is something that needs to be examined and seriously considered.
Please do feel free to contact me on this issue, which I go into more detail in the video above. It is critical we all work together - schools, governors, teachers, parents, MPs and councillors - to ensure we get the best deal for West Sussex children.