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HeadlineTottenham MP: School cuts to put children on “fast track to prison”

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A local MP has said that government cuts to school funding will put children in north London on a fast track to prison.” David Lammy made the remarks at a public meeting to object to the cuts.

A rally of Haringey parents, teachers and pupils, held on Tuesday, heard about what cuts to school budgets in the borough could mean. And the speakers didn’t mince their words.

David Lammy, MP for Tottenham, said Haringey would be the worst affected area in London, and could lose up to 500 teachers over the next four years. That, he said, could lead to children from the poorest parts of the borough ending up in jail.

Speaking exclusively to City News, Catherine West, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, said: “instead of reducing the size of the cake, the government should be expanding it. The chancellor should be prioritising education.”

Fortismere School in Haringey is one of the highest achieving in the borough with, 88% of students achieving good passes in English and Maths at GCSE last year., compared to a national average of just 59%.

But the success of this school and others like it in London is one of the reasons the government says they don’t need the money as much.

They say it’s all about redistributing the money across the country to make it fairer. London schools have historically benefitted from more generous funding, but now that they’re among the best in the country, other schools, particularly those in the north deserve to benefit.

But for Catherine West, it’s a nonsensical argument. “Just because you’re doing well doesn’t mean you should be penalised, and why see it as London versus the rest?”

The campaigners in Haringey say they won’t take no for an answer: their message for the government is simple: must try harder.