John Howell (Henley) (Con)
I present a petition that has been signed by just under 1,000 residents of Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire and friends of the schools in the Henley area to try to remove, once and for all, issues over school funding.
The petition states:
The petition of residents of Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire and of friends of the schools in the Henley area,
Declares that a funding review is needed in relation to schools in the Henley constituency; further that this school funding review should address how funding increases will be made in relation to schools in the Henley constituency in real terms beyond the amounts already being spent on schools and how to eliminate the gap between the best and lowest funded schools in the constituency; further that there must be a review of areas of inflationary pressures and situations where schools provide additional services such as social care, or deal with criminal behaviour to examine the real costs of providing education; further that there must be an assessment into the extent and access to capital funding; further that the Basic Entitlement must form an appropriate percentage of the National Funding Formula used locally; further that the Department and Treasury must ensure that small primary schools in the constituency remain integral to their communities.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons to ask the Department of Education and the Treasury to conduct a review of school funding in Henley that addresses the issues stated above, in advance of the Comprehensive Spending Review; and further requests that the findings of this review are communicated to the House of Commons.
And the petitioners remain, etc.
[P002454]
Judith Cummins (Bradford South) (Lab)
I rise to present a petition on behalf of teachers and staff at Russell Hall Primary School in Queensbury in my constituency. This petition has been signed by every single teacher and every member of support staff at the school, who are extremely concerned that this Government’s cuts to school funding are having a detrimental impact on the school’s ability to provide pupils with a well-rounded education. I hope that the Government will listen to the experts—the teachers, parents and children across the country—and stop these funding cuts.
The petition states:
The petition of residents of the United Kingdom,
Declares that Russell Hall Primary School has seen a decline in funding per pupil and a reduction in the lump sum allocated to the school by almost £65,000 in 2018/19 and by the same in 2019/20; further that the school is facing a significant deficit budget and is having to make staff redundancies to save money, including the reduction of vital frontline teaching staff, the restructure of support staff roles and the end of additional services currently available to children such as the Early Bird Club.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to increase per pupil funding and reverse the cuts made to school budgets.
And the petitioners remain, etc.
[P002455]