Part of 1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education – in the Senedd at 1:44 pm on 22 March 2017.
Okay. Well, I could read the quote to you, but I won’t do that; I’ll write to you. But, to all intents and purposes, there is a claim that the PDG funding is being directed at other purposes, which, to all intents and purposes, is propping up staffing levels within schools.
The committee has also heard that there’s a grave inconsistency in the funding provided to schools from one part of the country to another. According to figures gathered by NAHT Cymru on age-weighted pupil units in Wales, the funding per capita for pupils ranges from £1,798 in one county to £3,200 in another. This is another factor that contributes to this picture of financial pressures, which surely does have an impact on the variability in the teaching quality that we hear Estyn refer to constantly, and also the inconsistency in terms of the provision of CPD for teachers in some schools and counties, because the necessary resources aren’t available within schools to provide that. Can I ask, therefore, do you think that this financial inconsistency is acceptable and what is the Government going to do to seek greater equity in terms of funding or at least a more consistent funding system across Wales?