“Unless this funding is made more long-term and less restrictive, more schools may have to close after having spent their budgets on supply teachers, which will only serve to exacerbate growing attainment gaps.”
Responding to the Government announcing a new short-term COVID-19 workforce fund for schools facing the greatest staffing and funding pressures, Cllr Judith Blake, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Children and Young People Board, said:
“The increase in teachers self-isolating due to coronavirus and dwindling funds to pay for supply teachers are leading to whole year groups having to be sent home and school closures across the country.
“While this extra funding, on top of the additional school funding announced in the Spending Review, is helpful, it will only be available until Christmas and doesn’t plug the historic extra staffing costs schools have had to cover due to the pandemic. The qualifying threshold for funding also prevents many schools from benefiting, leaving them at risk of significantly depleted reserves at a very uncertain time.
“Unless this funding is made more long-term and less restrictive, more schools may have to close after having spent their budgets on supply teachers, which will only serve to exacerbate growing attainment gaps.”