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Richmond upon Thames Liberal Democrats:Covering the constituencies of Twickenham and Richmond Park |
Robbing schools to pay the dustman
June 25, 2011 8:24 PM
• [Jun 24]: IN line with the Conservative Council's new policy on maximising income from charges, local schools have been told that from next April they will have to pay for refuse and recycling collections.
As Council institutions, most have not been charged for this service in the past. In future schools will be charged several thousand pounds per year per school. Initially the Council tried to bill the schools from this September, but following an outcry from head teachers, this has been postponed until next April.
Liberal Democrat education spokesperson Malcolm Eady said: "This is in effect a reduction in the Council funding for schools. We have already seen cuts in services the Council provides to schools, but we are now seeing them being charged for services that the Council used to provide free of charge. The schools will get no additional money, so this means a reduction in the amount spent on educating children.
"In total, these charges will amount to more than a hundred thousand pounds per year being taken out of education in the borough. There has been no proposal taken to any council committee detailing these changes. The plan only came to light when head teachers were told the Council wanted to bring in the charges in September. It is not only disgraceful that these cuts in education are being imposed, but also that they have been hidden away from councillors and democratic scrutiny.
"This must be seen in relation to the Council's desire for all schools to leave Council control and become independent Academies, and in the outsourcing of Children's Services to a council-owned private company. None of these radical proposals have been consulted on or received agreement from the public.
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