Following a Parliamentary Question in the House of Commons on Monday, 15th June, Sir Nicholas Soames is organising a deputation of West Sussex MPs to meet Nicky Morgan MP, Secretary of State for Education, to discuss the worrying situation about education funding in West Sussex.

 

 

Sir Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex) (Con): What steps she is taking to develop leadership skills for head teachers. Will my right hon. Friend agree to receive a delegation from West Sussex, a county that has been significantly badly treated in local settlements? Is she aware that, during the general election, a number of headteachers asked to see Members in Mid Sussex, and it is clear that, unless there is a move towards a national funding formula, schools in Mid Sussex and West Sussex will continue to be significantly badly treated?

 

The Secretary of State for Education (Nicky Morgan): I am, of course, always pleased to discuss those issues with my right hon. Friend and his fellow Sussex MPs. He captures very well the reason we can no longer afford to sit back and allow the formula to work as originally designed—the inequities in funding across the country. We have made a clear commitment to tackle the issue and I look forward to working on it with my right hon. Friend and other Members.  [Hansard, Monday 15 June, 2015. Vol 597. No 16. Col 4]

 

Sir Nicholas said; “During the General Election I visited a number of schools across Mid Sussex to hear from Head Teachers their understandable anxieties about education funding and their budgets for the future. 

 

“The Secretary of State understands the significance of this matter and we hope to make some progress with her when we meet in the near future.”