Teachers call for action to save crisis-hit state nursery schools

by Schools4SA

Critics say years of neglect and indecision by the government have left a funding deficit

State nurseries in Britain are facing a monetary crisis immediately after years of “unjustifiable neglect” and indecision by the government, teachers warn as they prepare to petition the prime minister to “save maintained nursery schools”. Headteachers, parents and youngsters will gather at Downing Street on Monday to hand in a petition calling for enhanced state funding for nurseries to safe their long-term future. Maintained nurseries are run and inspected like schools, with certified teachers major a team of early years specialists, but don't have the exact same funding entitlements as schools and are hence facing a funding deficit. The National Education Union (NEU) says these nurseries will shed an estimated third of their budget when short-term funding commitments - a “stopgap” measure began in 2017 - expire in April 2021.

Mary Bousted, NEU joint general secretary, stated the lack of clarity about long-term funding meant nurseries were in crisis. “Heads of maintained nurseries are hanging on by their fingernails,” she said. She added that the majority of maintained nurseries are “beacons of excellence” in deprived places, and their closure would hit vulnerable and disadvantaged families. “These are precisely the areas that Boris Johnson and this government talk about in terms of levelling up. Nicely, one of several best methods they are able to level up is by maintaining these nurseries going and well-funded ... I believe it’s an act of unjustifiable neglect.” Rachel Gillet, head of two maintained nurseries in Warwickshire, mentioned: “I have moments when I’m looking at a deficit I can not close since I’ve taken all of the measures I can to cut costs.

I've to sit inside the sandpit and watch the youngsters, and remember precisely what I’m fighting for.” She added that it truly is tough to recruit high-quality staff due to the fact she can only offer short-term contracts. “It’s frustrating. I’m passionate about early education, and I do wonder why I’m nonetheless having to make the argument for it.” A Department for Education spokesperson mentioned: “We recognise the value of maintained nursery schools … particularly in disadvantaged locations. We are providing about £60m of supplementary funding during the 2020-21 financial year.” The government was committed to funding maintained nurseries in the longer term, she said, but declined to comment on just how much funding the government will present beyond the 2020-21 economic year.