Angela Rayner MP visited Reading to meet with teachers and students to talk about SATs, GCSE exams and the extra costs for Reading teachers
The Shadow Secretary of State for Education met with Labour’s Reading West parliamentary candidate Cllr Rachel Eden and Southcote councillor and newly elected Council Leader Cllr Jason Brock at Prospect School and St Michaels School to talk with teachers about their education policy and funding concerns.
They also spoke with students on a variety of topics including education, climate change and Brexit.
Prospect School in Tilehurst has been one of the worst hit by the central government cuts, with schoolcuts.org calculating the school lost out on £1.1 million between 2015 and 2019, a per-pupil loss of £391.
Councillors passed a motion in October last year calling on education secretary Damian Hinds to rethink plans to reduce spending per pupil.
Rachel Eden, parliamentary candidate for Reading West, called on the government to rethink, saying: “I was glad to welcome Angela to Reading to speak with teachers locally about the impact of the cuts.
“I was pleased to support Cllr Pearce’s motion to Reading Borough Council in October on the school cuts. The Tories have taken millions of pounds from Reading schools with an average £370 per-pupil loss.
“I call on Damian Hinds MP to rethink these plans to reduce spending per pupil.”
Angela said: “The Tories have cut billions of pounds from our schools and with rising pressures on class sizes and teachers leaving in droves, a generation of children is paying the price for Tory failure.
“In Reading, I saw at first hand the pressures faced by local schools.
“The next Labour government will invest in a National Education Service, ending Tory cuts to our schools and increasing per pupil funding in real terms.”
Catherine Wilson, who is a parent of a student at Prospect School said: “I know the teachers at Prospect are trying their best to educate the next generation. It makes me angry that the government is making their task harder by taking away funding. Our local MP seems uninterested in the effect of these cuts locally.”
