Schools consider three-day week amid funding ‘crisis’

School leaders are said to be considering implementing a three-day week as they struggle to cope with rising energy bills and teacher salaries. 

According to The Telegraph, headteachers, trustees and governors are holding ‘crisis meetings’ during the summer holidays to work out how to keep schools afloat in the autumn term.

The planned teacher pay rises in September will put pressure on school budgets at the same time as their energy costs are expected to rise by up to 300%.

Mark Jordan, the chief executive of Creative Education Trust, a multi-academy trust, said he had heard discussions of a ‘three-day week’ to save on costs.

Didsbury CE School

Jordan said his trust is considering a recruitment freeze and redundancies, and may have to scrap the planned Covid catch-up programmes for children, as well as planned investments and improvements in school buildings.

He said: “Others less fortunate are facing significant deficits and are already planning for teacher redundancies.”

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The chief executive of one of the largest academy trusts in the country added: “Shorter school days, fewer after school clubs and enrichment opportunities and draconian restrictions on energy usage will become a reality for all trusts and the situation is particularly challenging for smaller trusts and standalone schools.

“This is not a plaintive plea of poverty. Nor is it the usual begging bowl moment ahead of a spending review – this is serious stuff.”

MMU

Schools have been facing increasing financial pressures for years, with the government funding per pupil in England falling by 9% between 2010 and 2020.

While the Government promised an additional £7billion for school budgets in England by 2024, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned that spending per pupil will still be lower than 2010 levels in real terms.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: “We recognise that schools – much like the wider economy – are facing increased costs, including on energy and staff pay.

“Our schools white paper set out our expectation that the school week should last a minimum of 32.5 hours – the current average – for all mainstream state-funded schools. Thousands of schools already deliver this length of week within existing budgets and we expect current funding plans to account for this.”