Witham MP meets the Secretary of State for Education to discuss support for schools

Priti Patel, the Member of Parliament for the Witham constituency, recently met with the Education Secretary, the Rt. Hon Gillian Keegan, to discuss increased financial support for schools in light of recent economic pressures. During the meeting, they discussed the impact of increasing energy bills on school budgets and the support that central Government could provide to help schools who are facing difficulties.

This built upon work throughout the year by Priti in ensuring the voice of local schools is being heard in Westminster. In October, Priti met with headteachers and representatives of local academies and trusts to discuss the issues they were facing with their school budgets, and she has also raised these concerns with Essex County Council in November, when she met with Cllr Tony Ball the Cabinet Member for Education and Clare Kershaw, Director of Education. Separate to this, Priti also met with Jonathan Duff, Regional Director for the East of England at the Department for Education, to discuss localised support for schools across the Witham constituency and the need to ensure that school standards are maintained.

Following these discussions, Priti was very pleased to welcome the recent announcement in the Spending Review regarding school funding, which will see the Government investing an additional £2.3 billion of funding in 2023-24 and 2024-25 to the core budget in England.

Priti said: “It is welcome news that the Government has listened to the concerns raised about the financial difficulties schools have experienced and delivered additional funding for the coming financial year’s budget.

“It is imperative that during these challenging economic circumstances, education standards are prioritised and students continue to be put first. This further support will provide much needed reassurance to pupils, parents, and schools across my constituency.”

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