Schools across England are being forced to drop languages from their curriculum, keep the heating off “until it’s freezing” and increase class sizes to save money during the cost of living crisis, a new report has found.
A survey of more than 600 state-funded schools and colleges found just two per cent think they will have enough funding to see them through the next academic year.
Almost a quarter said they would have to eat into their reserves to balance the books in 2022/23, while a further 60 per cent said they would have to cut costs over the coming months and in future years to make ends meet.
The survey, published by the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), found that 44 per cent of schools will have to reduce teaching staff and the number of subjects taught this year to save money, with music, drama, design and technology, and modern foreign languages the first on the chopping block.
