Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Education – in the Senedd at 2:00 pm on 13 March 2019.

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Photo of Siân Gwenllian Siân Gwenllian Plaid Cymru 2:00, 13 March 2019

(Translated)

Thank you, Llywydd. Headteachers the length and breadth of Wales are warning that there is a funding crisis facing our schools and that this will have far-reaching impacts—larger class sizes, fewer teachers, the condition of buildings deteriorating, reduction in the support for additional learning needs, cuts to pastoral services and well-being services. We are losing hundreds of our most experienced teachers and mid-level leaders from our schools as a result of early retirement.

The Children, Young People and Education Committee inquiry has placed a focus on the need to increase the quantum being spent on education, and it's also started to discuss what measures could be put in place even within the existing budget in order to ensure that more funding reaches our schools. There is one teaching union, with the support of the Conservatives, that recommends moving towards a system of direct school funding, creating a system similar to the academies in England. What's your view on direct funding?