The government’s “derisory and demoralising” pay offer could make some schools financially unviable if it is not backed up by more funding, say headteachers.
Ministers have said they believe schools can afford to fund most of a proposed pay rise averaging 4.5 per cent – only pledging extra funding for a £1,000 one-off payment this year and 0.5 per cent of the rise for 2023-24.
But headteachers and trust leaders say unfunded pay rises will send schools into the red.
Dan Morrow, the chief executive of Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust in Devon, said all 19 of his schools already faced a deficit, following support staff pay rises and an “absolutely astronomical rise” in energy costs.
