{"id":54436,"date":"2022-09-05T08:37:03","date_gmt":"2022-09-05T08:37:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2022\/09\/05\/schools-could-cut-staff-or-courses-to-pay-bills\/"},"modified":"2022-09-05T08:37:03","modified_gmt":"2022-09-05T08:37:03","slug":"schools-could-cut-staff-or-courses-to-pay-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2022\/09\/05\/schools-could-cut-staff-or-courses-to-pay-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"Schools could cut staff or courses to pay bills"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Government schools have warned they may have to lose teachers, hire staff or cut courses to meet rising energy bills.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Essex’s Sweyne Park School said it was prepared for an annual gas bill of \u00a3580,000 under a new tariff in October, 346% more than the \u00a3130,000 it currently pays.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Finance Director Simon Smith said it was “without a doubt” that staff or class changes would impact students.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The government said the funding has made the cost increases “largely affordable”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Rayleigh Secondary School has solar panels in one of its teaching blocks but most of the school is heated by gas boilers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe may have to consider reducing the number of our employees; we may try not to replace staff,\u201d added Mr. Smith.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“We may look at some of our courses and where we have small group sizes we cut them down.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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At Kesgrave High, another state school near Ipswich, headmistress Julia Upton said she was “nervous” about the compromises that would have to be made.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Energy efficient windows will be installed and the roof will be re-felted and re-insulated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“If we end up having to lose some employees because of this financial pressure, it will only put more strain on those who remain,” she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“On the one hand we try to attract employees to the job and keep them in the job with a salary bonus, but on the other hand we probably make the conditions more difficult for them.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In a Times Education Supplement survey of 121 school principals released Tuesday, 77% said they could cut back on heating.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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About 29% said they might need to consider downsizing, while 53% said they might need to pause hiring.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The Department for Education said schools budgets would increase by \u00a37bn by 2024-2025 and they would get a 7% per pupil increase in funding in 2022-23, which is “largely affordable for schools”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Find BBC News: East of England <\/i>Facebook, <\/i>Instagram and <\/i>Twitter<\/a>. If you have an email with a story suggestion <\/i>eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk<\/p>\n<\/div>\n