EVERY member of staff at a Queensbury school has signed a petition demanding the Government reverses funding cuts and invests in the next generation.

Bradford South MP Judith Cummins discussed Russell Hall Primary School’s petition in Parliament this week.

The school has had its Government lump sum reduced by £130,000 over the last two years, and now fears losing staff and services.

Headteacher Andrea Grist said: “We had our lump sum cut by £65,000 last year, but we hoped the Government would see the damage that caused and things would improve for us.

“We spoke to MPs and councillors about our plight and we were hoping to get a cash injection. Instead, we received just £10,000 from the Government and had a further lump sum cut of £65,000.

“Besides that, our per pupil funding has gone down gradually over the last five or six years.

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“We’re doing all we can to tighten our belts. We’re getting competitive contracts and reducing anything and everything. The PTA have been very active with their fundraising but we’ve got nowhere else to go.

“There’ll have to be a staffing restructure which could lead to potential losses of people and services.

“I took over at the school five years ago and we were told we required improvement by Ofsted. By 2016 we had a ‘Good’ rating and that’s largely down to things like the Early Bird Club, which may be under threat now.

“The expectation on schools is increasing, yet we can’t offer offer what families and children need because of cuts to our already overstretched staff. It’s a sad situation.”

Russell Hall ended the 2018/19 financial year with £36,174 in its revenue budget. That was down from the £42,086 it ended the 2017/18 financial year with.

Bradford South MP Ms Cummins said: “The headteacher and teaching staff at the school are doing a fantastic job, but schools should have the funding that allows them to deliver the very best education that our children deserve.

“Every single school in Bradford South that I have visited has raised the issue of cuts to school funding with me.

“I have spoken to headteachers who tell me they are unable to fix leaking roofs, I’ve spoken to a headteacher who is considering cutting the school week to four-and-a-half days to save money, and I’ve spoken to headteachers who tell me that in order to balance the books they will have to make staff cuts.

“I intend to write to every school in my constituency about the level of funding cuts they are facing.

“If that means I am submitting a petition in Parliament every single day until our schools have the funding from Government they need, then so be it.”

The Department for Education said in a statement: “This year, under the National Funding Formula, schools in Bradford receive £4,802 per pupil, above the national average of £4,689.

“This results in an additional £13.4 million in total for schools in the area, compared to 2017-18.

“Since 2017, we have given every local authority more money for every pupil in every school.”