As students across York return to school this week, the Prime Minister has announced that the Government will invest over £14 billion in primary and secondary education between now and 2022/23.
This more than delivers on Boris Johnson’s pledge when entering Downing Street to increase school funding by £4.6bn above inflation, levelling up education funding and giving all young people the same opportunities to succeed – regardless of where they grow up or go to school. This is excellent news for York and this certainty will give our schools the stability they need to plan their budgets for the foreseeable future.
Julian Sturdy, Member of Parliament for York Outer, welcomed this announcement, especially the £700 million funding increase for Special Education Needs and Disabilities:
“Earlier this year I met with the Minister for Children and Families, Nadhim Zahawi MP, to raise the concerns of a number of constituents regarding the way that support for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) is funded in schools. The announcement by Boris Johnson is excellent news for students in York as the extra funding will allow child to access appropriate support, which will in turn relieve some pressure from our hard working teachers in our schools.”
Cllr Martin Rowley, Councillor for Osbaldwick & Derwent and a local school governor for 26 years, echoed Mr Sturdy’s praise for the announcement, commenting:
“While I welcome the increase in overall school spending in York, I am particularly pleased with the increased SEND budget, this will enable our excellent educational professionals to deliver even better services to those SEND pupils in our City, and see them valued and encouraged to not just reach their potential, but go beyond it.”
