Schools in Surrey are set to be hit with a £24.8 million cut to spending power in 2024/25 data from the National Education Union reveals.

It means that funding per pupil in Surrey will be cut by £167 in 2024/25 compared with 2023/24. There are 355 schools in Surrey, 332 of which will have less spending power in 2024/25 as a result of these funding cuts. For primary schools in Surrey, there will be a £155 reduction in spending power per pupil over the next financial year, and in Secondary schools there will be a £207 fall in spending power per pupil.

The Liberal Democrats have warned that the fall in spending power will push already stretched school budgets to the brink, with a worse educational experience for pupils and worse outcomes.

It comes as new data released last week shows that this Conservative Government has cut the annual growth in funding in cash terms from 8% in 2023/4 to 3.1% in 2024/5. The Lib Dems are calling for the Government to review school funding after the IFS has concluded that the purchasing power of school budgets in 2024 will still be about 4% lower than in 2010.

This Conservative Government has failed Surrey’s children. Parents in our community should not have to send their children to schools which have had their funding decimated by a Conservative Government that has lost interest in providing high-quality education.

Investing in education is investing in our future but this Conservative Government has let school buildings crumble and overseen a severe shortage of teachers. Far from preparing the next generation for the future, Ministers have totally abandoned them.

The Lib Dems know that investment in education boosts our children’s futures – the Treasury needs to urgently look at increasing school funding.