Heads criticise council's call to cut deficit

Head teachers say losing pastoral support staff for vulnerable children will lead to an increase in mental health issues

Head teachers from 40 schools across Brighton and Hove have criticised a call for deficit cuts, describing them as “morally wrong”.

A joint letter described Brighton & Hove Council's plan to trim deficits by 10% as "demoralising and frustrating".

The council asked schools to make the cuts due to concerns over deficits.

The joint letter said cuts will cause a decline in standards and will jeopardise the "safety, effectiveness and efficiency" of schools.

Jo Lyons, the council's assistant director for education and skills, contacted heads as only 27 of 62 “council maintained” schools had submitted a balanced budget for the 2023-24 school year.

A further 35 had a shortfall requiring a “licensed deficit”, with schools expected to show how they would balance their budget.

Due to licenced deficits totalling more than £5m, Dr Lyons suggested schools "further review" budget plans with a view to make deficit cuts of 10%.

'Impact on children'

In a joint letter in response to Ms Lyons, the head teachers said: “Every school is in a unique position and a broad-brush stroke of ‘find a further 10 per cent saving’ is both demoralising and frustrating."

They also accused the council of being unwilling to charge schools less for certain centrally-provided services such as human resources.

“We know you must realise that by reducing staff in school this is having a direct impact on what we are offering our children," they said.

“Stripping out swathes of support staff may help balance the books but it is morally wrong."

Councillor Jacob Taylor, co-chair of the council’s Families, Children & Schools Committee, said: "We know some schools are struggling to balance their budgets as they receive money mainly based on the number of children they have at their school.

"The council has to make sure the DSG, a ringfenced grant, is balanced, so we’ve asked those schools who are projecting they'll exceed their budget to see if they can reduce their projected deficit, or overspend, by 10%."