Government must provide fair funding for our schools most disadvantaged children

Responding to analysis by the Education Policy Institute (EPI) that shows Boris Johnson's education spending pledge would be more than twice as expensive as previously stated, benefitting schools in affluent areas the most, Lib Dem Education Spokesperson Layla Moran MP has said that truly "fairer funding" is needed to ensure support goes to the schools that need it the most.

During Mr Johnson's leadership campaign he promised to raise minimum per-pupil funding to £5,000 a year in secondary schools and £4,000 in primaries. Analysis by the EPI showed that this would mean increased spending of only around £306 million and £50 million respectively per year.
Mr Johnson has also pledged to increase school funding by £4.6 billion a year by 2022/23, but a group of teachers' unions and local authorities have said an additional £12.6 billion will be needed by then to reverse cuts and provide a "standard of education that society expects".

Responding, Layla Moran said "Mr Johnson's promise to 'level up' funding clearly comes nowhere near what is required to ensure all our schools can provide a quality education to all our children. This minimum guarantee will help less than half of schools in mainly affluent areas, when schools across the country are sacking supply staff and asking parents for help buying the basics. Liberal Democrats demand better for our schools. We would reverse school cuts with an emergency cash injection, so that every child can access to a high-quality education no matter where they live."