Chancellor George Osborne today announced the Budget 2016.
The key education headlines related mainly to schools, with the news that the government intends to turn all state schools into academies confirmed after being leaked last night. The Chancellor said that by 2020, all schools either will be an academy, or will be in the process of becoming an academy. This has been a key focus of the government’s time in parliament, including during its coalition with the Liberal Democrats.
Currently 4,515 of all schools (both primary and secondary) are academies, out of a total of 20,147, so there is significant work to be done. Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn argued that there was no evidence to suggest academies performed better than state schools. Mr Osborne said the government would be “setting schools free of local bureaucracy.”
The government continues to focus on upskilling learners in the core areas of maths, with the Chancellor stating it will review how to improve the study of maths to all pupils up to the age of 18. The government will also use a budget of £0.5 billion to speed up the introduction of a fair National Funding Formula, but didn’t outline how this will work.
Another key highlight for schools was the potential extension of school hours. Mr Osborne tied this into his ‘sugar tax’; the rising issue of childhood obesity was covered in detail in the Budget announcement, with the Chancellor keen to tackle the health of young children. In 2 years, the government will introduce a levy on the soft drinks industry which is expected to raise £520 million. The government says this will, in part, fund the extension of school opening hours and allow schools to deliver more after-school activities to their pupils including sport and art. At least a quarter of schools will receive this funding, and will have to bid for this. The money raised from the sugar levy will also be used to double the funding for sports in primary schools.
Mr Osborne repeatedly stated that this Budget is “for the next generation”, arguing that the schools announcements will help young people. Labour’s Mr Corbyn, however, suggested the government wasn’t focusing on the key issues schools are currently facing: a teacher recruitment crisis and increasing class sizes. He also warned that due to forecasted rising levels of child poverty, rising debt levels and low wages and zero hour contracts, our next generation could in fact be worse off.
A focus will be placed on the standards of schools in the North, dubbed the ‘Northern Powerhouse’. The government is committing £20million to the cause, funding turnaround activities in coastal and ‘vulnerable’ schools, bringing in mentors from schools receiving an ‘Outstanding’ Ofsted rating to struggling schools, and investing in the expansion of the best academy chains.
The only mention of education outside of schools was in relation to the Apprenticeship Levy, as Mr Osborne announced that the government will top up monthly funds entering Apprenticeship Levy payers’ digital accounts by 10%. This means employers will be able to take out more than they contribute.
Apart from the small announcement regarding the Apprenticeship Levy, Further Education and Skills weren’t mentioned in the Budget, and look to have escaped further funding cuts. The government clearly intends to see its existing reforms through, but with a number of unprotected budgets in education, the sector will still be looking over the horizon with worry.
What are your thoughts on the Budget? Do you think the government is going in the right direction with its school announcements? What do you make of the omission of Further Education and Skills – is this a good sign?
