Pepe Di’Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, comments on a report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) about the state of college finances in England.
“Colleges have long been starved of the funding they need and some are in a really difficult financial position. One of the consequences of this is they are unable to offer salaries which compare to those of school teachers or the private sector, and therefore recruiting specialist staff becomes very challenging. There is no justifiable reason for college teachers to be paid on average £7,000 less than their counterparts in the school sector for doing essentially the same job. We urge the Chancellor to make funding available to put an end to the real-terms pay cuts experienced by college teachers and the disparity with the salaries of teachers working in schools.
“Colleges play a pivotal role in driving economic growth by equipping the workforce of the future with the skills they need to thrive. With the number of post-16 students continuing to rise in the coming years, the government has to ensure that colleges have the funding and staff they need to support them. One simple way of improving the financial state of all colleges would be with the introduction of a VAT reimbursement scheme, enabling them to direct more of their available funds into the classroom.
“The Autumn Budget provides a chance to address the longstanding shortfalls in post-16 funding and demonstrate commitment to the skills agenda. The government cannot afford to let this opportunity pass them by.”