Initiate Cuts
Negotiations – Gwern ap Rhisiart, Head of Education
Minutes:
The item was presented by
the Head of Department, drawing attention to the following main points:
Members were reminded
of the need to develop savings and cuts plans across the Council as a result of the current financial situation. It was
explained that the Council had made cuts that were equivalent to 3% over the
last two years across its services but the need for more cuts in the future was
emphasised.
It was detailed that
the Council was looking to achieve cuts equivalent to a further 3% over the
next three years (approximately £36million). It was emphasised that robust
decisions had not been made to date and that the Head of Department would
submit the Department's plans for savings and cuts to the Cabinet Members and
Council Leader over the coming weeks, highlighting the cost of services and
listing statutory services.
It was reiterated that
it was considered that this would be a cut of £2.7million to schools over the
next three years. It was emphasised that there was no decision on the size of
the impact of these cuts on schools, and it was noted that they hoped that a
proportion of the cuts could be achieved internally. It was considered that the
cuts on schools would be divided as follows:
· £1.3 million
of cuts in the primary sector
· £1.2 million
of cuts in the secondary sector
· £178,000 of
cuts in the special sector.
The Forum was asked for
their input on the best methods to go about trying to achieve these cuts and
savings. The comments below were noted by the Forum members:
· It was
agreed that the size of the cuts for the future was alarming.
· It was felt
that it was important that schools received confirmation of the minimum service
level that was acceptable during this difficult period, by clearly setting out
the schools' specific requirements to the headteachers.
· Reference
was made to the fact that it was important that no cuts impacted those schools
which were already being protected.
· It was
considered that medium sized schools often suffered during challenging periods
of this type. It was explained that the cuts would likely lead to losing
practical experiences because schools would not have sufficient staff numbers
to supervise such activities.
· The
importance of updating the Education Strategy was emphasised.
· It was
considered that the education system was not efficient in Gwynedd at present
due to the need to serve so many schools when pupil numbers were reducing.
· A general
feeling was shared that individuals accepted that closing the county's smallest
schools was inevitable.
In response to the
comments, it was confirmed that arrangements were in place to update the
education strategy and it was expected that it would highlight service
expectations and school pressures in the future.
It was reiterated that it
was likely that more schools would be categorised as being protected as this
period continued. Unfortunately, it was confirmed that it was likely that
holding discussions about the possibility of closing schools would be
inevitable due to the financial squeeze. It was explained if schools had to
close, the financial savings from maintaining those schools would be
transferred to reduce the financial savings expected from other schools in the
county.
It was considered that
the Department's delay to modernise education also contributed to the situation
which schools faced in the next few years. Reassurance was given that the
Department would communicate any decisions and changes with the schools with transparency
when moving forward.