School Funding Cuts Likely to Affect the Poorest Children

News of recent budget cuts by the Conservative party including to the education system has drawn criticism from teaching unions and charities.

Recent research conducted by the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) have found that expected funding cuts to many areas within the education system will hit poorest students the hardest.

Approximately 40% of students in the 997 state schools examined in the study receive free school meals (FSM), an indicator of poverty (material deprivation).

The national funding formula, which determines how much money each pupil should receive for their schooling is due to change from next year and the NUT and CPAG argue that this will negatively affect poorer areas the most.

MORE: Schools with poorest pupils to be hardest hit by funding cuts, study finds