Education Funding Must Be Prioritised in Edinburgh Following Proposed Cuts to Budget

Unite for Education is calling on Edinburgh City Council to prioritise the funding of education after it announced a raft of cuts to education.

Councillors in Edinburgh are set to approve the £40 million slashing of the education budget across the city after failing to close a funding gap.

The news will be a hammer blow for parents across Edinburgh and comes at a time when government policy to introduce VAT on independent schools means many parents will no longer be able to afford school fees.

The financial pressures on schools are already being felt with children paying the price for political decisions. Just two weeks ago, Cedars school in Inverclyde and Kilgraston school in Perth announced they are set to close due to a lack of funding.

Commenting on the news, Founder of Unite for Education, Niel Deepnarain said, “We are deeply concerned about the provision of education for children across Scotland. These cuts will be worrying for parents who just want to know their children are going to get a good education.

“It is sad that Edinburgh City Council appears to be prioritising the spending of millions of pounds on vanity projects such as cycle lanes, LTNs high, providing funds for organisations and festivals that many in the city do not want funds to be spent on with rather than investing in children’s future. There appears to be plenty of money for various pet projects, various festivals, other groups and organisations so this is not an issue of a lack of money, this is the direct result of misplaced priorities and poor political decisions.

“We are calling on the city’s Councillors to reject these plans and instead choose to prioritise the funding of education which is vital to the long term success of Edinburgh and Scotland. Scotland used to have a world leading education system and there will be no chance of rebuilding that reputation if funding reductions are implemented.”

The planned cuts to education will, according to The Edinburgh Reporter, result in a reduction of staff responsible for driving improvements in schools as well as a reduction in the provision of transport for children with special needs amongst other cuts.

The Council has blamed the funding gap on what it says is a £7.9m reduction in the funding it receives from the Scottish Government and says it has previously protected the education budget which makes up half of the council’s annual expenditure, but has no option now but to make cuts to the education budget.

Unite for Education is urging the church to awake to the reality of the challenges facing education and arise to the challenge of helping to support the provision of education. It was the church that started schools because it recognised the need for every child to have access to education and so the church must now take action to support Christian schools and Christians in education.