Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Thursday, Nov 13, 2025

Schools in deprived areas face further cuts next year, unions say

Schools in deprived areas face further cuts next year, unions say

Study shows extra government funding will not ease pressure in poorest parts of England
Schools in some of England’s most deprived areas will suffer increased budget pressures and cuts next year, despite the government’s promise of extra funding, according to analysis by teaching unions.

A report into individual school allocations for 2020-21 – using data released by the Department for Education – found “a strong link between deprivation and the scale of government cuts to school funding”, even accounting for the £2.6bn increase announced in August.

The analysis conducted by the National Education Union (NEU) found that real-terms cuts to schools serving the poorest pupils would be more than three times as deep as those in schools in the wealthiest areas.

“We are not being churlish, we are just stating the facts,” said Geoff Barton, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, which represents many secondary school heads in England. “The extra money for schools is not enough to reverse the cuts and the funding crisis is not over.”

Nine out of 10 secondary schools with the highest proportion of pupils on free school meals will lose out, with average real-terms spending cuts of £509 per pupil compared with 2015-16, while the majority of those serving the least deprived will be £117 worse off than five years earlier.

About 40% of primary schools with the highest levels of pupils eligible for free school meals will experience further cuts, averaging from £300 to £380 per pupil less than in 2015-16.

The cuts come despite the government’s plan to put more money into schools, starting in 2020-21 and continuing until 2022-23, when it says an additional £7bn will be spent on mainstream schooling and special educational needs and disabilities (Send) combined.

Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said one in three schools would only receive increases of about 1.8% in their overall funding, which amounts to real-terms cuts after inflation.

“This shows that it will take a lot more than the government is currently offering in order to properly restore the funding that’s been lost over the past several years,” he said.

Kevin Courtney, the joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said: “The unfairness of the distribution of Boris Johnson’s additional school funding is breathtaking. Johnson promised that there would be no more ‘winners and losers’ in education – a noble commitment, but it does not match reality.”

Lord Agnew, the schools minister in the House of Lords, came under fire from state school heads at a conference in Newcastle, with one telling Agnew that the new funding was “going to support children who are in more Conservative areas of the country” rather than disadvantaged areas such as the north-east of England.

Agnew dismissed the criticism as “political noise” and reiterated the government’s determination to raise minimum per pupil funding to £5,000 for secondary schools.

Earlier analysis by the Sunday Times found that more than 90% of the schools receiving a funding increase of more than £100 per pupil will be in Conservative-held constituencies, in areas such as Essex and Kent.

The new figures from the DfE show that schools in the most deprived parts of England, including Tower Hamlets in London and Hartlepool in the north-east, will face above-average levels of cuts.

Angela Rayner, the shadow education secretary, said the figures showed the government’s promises on school funding were “rapidly unravelling”.

“Schools in more affluent, Conservative areas and those attending selective grammar schools are set to benefit, while pupils and schools in disadvantaged areas will continue to lose out, entrenching, not tackling, inequality,” Rayner said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Cristiano Ronaldo Embraces Saudi Arabia’s 2034 World Cup Vision with Key Role
Saudi Arabia’s Execution Campaign Escalates as Crown Prince Readies U.S. Visit
Trump Unveils Middle East Reset: Syria Re-engaged, Saudi Ties Amplified
Saudi Arabia to Build Future Cities Designed with Tourists in Mind, Says Tourism Minister
Saudi Arabia Advances Regulated Stablecoin Plans with Global Crypto Exchange Support
Saudi Arabia Maintains Palestinian State Condition Ahead of Possible Israel Ties
Chinese Steel Exports Surge 41% to Saudi Arabia as Mills Pivot Amid Global Trade Curbs
Saudi Arabia’s Biban Forum 2025 Secures Over US$10 Billion in Deals Amid Global SME Drive
Saudi Arabia Sets Pre-Conditions for Israel Normalisation Ahead of Trump Visit
MrBeast’s ‘Beast Land’ Arrives in Riyadh as Part of Riyadh Season 2025
Cristiano Ronaldo Asserts Saudi Pro League Outperforms Ligue 1 Amid Scoring Feats
AI Researchers Claim Human-Level General Intelligence Is Already Here
Saudi Arabia Pauses Major Stretch of ‘The Line’ Megacity Amid Budget Re-Prioritisation
Saudi Arabia Launches Instant e-Visa Platform for Over 60 Countries
Dick Cheney, Former U.S. Vice President, Dies at 84
Saudi Crown Prince to Visit Trump at White House on November Eighteenth
Trump Predicts Saudi Arabia Will Normalise with Israel Ahead of 18 November Riyadh Visit
Entrepreneurial Momentum in Saudi Arabia Shines at Riyadh Forward 2025 Summit
Saudi Arabia to Host First-Ever International WrestleMania in 2027
Saudi Arabia to Host New ATP Masters Tournament from 2028
Trump Doubts Saudi Demand for Palestinian State Before Israel Normalisation
Viral ‘Sky Stadium’ for Saudi Arabia’s 2034 World Cup Debunked as AI-Generated
Deal Between Saudi Arabia and Israel ‘Virtually Impossible’ This Year, Kingdom Insider Says
Saudi Crown Prince to Visit Washington While Israel Recognition Remains Off-Table
Saudi Arabia Poised to Channel Billions into Syria’s Reconstruction as U.S. Sanctions Linger
Smotrich’s ‘Camels’ Remark Tests Saudi–Israel Normalisation Efforts
Saudi Arabia and Qatar Gain Structural Edge in Asian World Cup Qualification
Israeli Energy Minister Delays $35 Billion Gas Export Agreement with Egypt
Fincantieri and Saudi Arabia Agree to Build Advanced Maritime Ecosystem in Kingdom
Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN Accelerates AI Ambitions Through Major Partnerships and Infrastructure Push
IOC and Saudi Arabia End Ambitious 12-Year Esports Games Partnership
CSL Seqirus Signs Saudi Arabia Pact to Provide Cell-Based Flu Vaccines and Build Local Production
Qualcomm and Saudi Arabia’s HUMAIN Team Up to Deploy 200 MW AI Infrastructure
Saudi Arabia’s Economy Expands Five Percent in Third Quarter Amid Oil Output Surge
China’s Vice President Han Zheng Meets Saudi Crown Prince as Trade Concerns Loom
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Syria Holds First Elections Since Fall of Assad
×