“A mother has asked if her children could be given any leftover school meals.” It’s comments like that – one of several captured in a new survey ahead of the second annual National School Governors’ Awareness Day – which really bring home the impact of the cost of living crisis on pupils and their families. It certainly touched a nerve with me, and I’ve been a school governor for more than 30 years.
Our survey of more than 300 governors, carried out in January, reveals that the cost-of-living crisis has been discussed by more than 9 in 10 governing boards, with 53 per cent of respondents saying that the biggest impact of the crisis is an increase in the number of pupils arriving at school hungry.
A rise in parents being unable to afford school uniform and appropriate footwear for their children was cited by a similar proportion (51 per cent) of those surveyed.
Governors also refer to a range of other economic impacts on their school communities. These include more families being unable to afford school meals, increased anxiety in children and more children going without warm outdoor clothing.
The crisis also affects schools in indirect ways, according to the survey. “More parents are doing extra jobs to make ends meet and they don’t see each other because one goes out to work as the other comes in – that means fewer parents are able to volunteer for the PTA and help in school,” one governor commented. Another spoke of some children starting school far behind their peers because parents couldn’t afford nursery fees.
All this is happening at a time when school budgets are being squeezed due to a range of factors. The vast majority of governors surveyed (89 per cent) report that, unsurprisingly, rising energy costs is the number one budget pressure. The reduction in real-terms funding is a close second, highlighted in 76 per cent of respondents. Meanwhile, general inflationary pressures and unfunded teacher and teaching assistant pay awards are also top concerns by 65 per cent and 75 per cent of respondents respectively.
These findings are deeply concerning
Half of our survey respondents confirmed they are unable to balance school budgets without it impacting on vital resources and support for children. The top three impacts were a reduction in the numbers of teaching and classroom assistants, seen in 55 per cent of responses, cutting back on school trips and activities which enrich school activities (42 per cent) and reducing support staff hours (41 per cent).
While these findings are deeply concerning, there are clear indications that schools are trying hard to support families – and school governors are stepping up and playing their part. 56 per cent of our survey respondents told us that their schools have put in place additional measures to reduce the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on their families.
These measures include opening a community shed to provide food and other household items, coat banks, increasing breakfast club numbers and referring more families to social care.
There’s a simple reason why the impact of the cost of living crisis will be the main focus of our National School Governors’ Awareness Day discussions. The core purpose of school governance is to ensure that children and young people receive the best possible learning and care in our schools. If they arrive at school hungry, cold and anxious, this will have an immense impact on their learning, wellbeing and life chances.
My hope is that the conversations we facilitate through Awareness Day help this many more of this huge volunteer force realise they can play a more active role in helping their schools address the cost-of-living crisis. They are a vital link in making schools fully aware of the extent of the crisis and its impact on their communities and crucial in leading on establishing and developing support initiatives.
Our survey found that many governors are already doing great work here, but we all need to step up in the months ahead.
Your thoughts