Government’s treatment of college staff is ‘disgraceful’, Jeremy Corbyn tells protest

The government’s treatment of college staff is “disgraceful”, Jeremy Corbyn told thousands of students, teachers and principals at a rally over post-16 funding cuts.

The Labour leader spoke out in support of the campaign for more college funding at a protest near Parliament, where he warned that future “skilled workers” could be deprived of opportunities amid cuts.

Speaking after thousands of principals, staff and students marched on Westminster, Mr Corbyn condemned the government for saying austerity was over as teachers are still feeling its effect.

His comments to the rally came as Labour released new analysis claiming that funding for further education (FE) and skills has been cut by more than £3bn in real terms since 2010.

The party’s calculation, based on an analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), has found that spending on further education and skills fell by £3.3bn in real terms between 2010-11 and 2017-18.

Speaking to college students and lecturers who gathered in the rain in Parliament Square, Mr Corbyn said: “I have to say that the way that the staff have been treated by this government is disgraceful.”

He added: “We stand today for properly funded colleges and properly paid staff. We stand today for the principles of education for all as a right.“

Mr Corbyn said there had been “chronic underfunding of education”, and said it was a “waste of resources” to deny some people the education that they need and could benefit from.

He added that college education was very important as a “pathway to liberation” for many young people, also commenting that apprenticeships and university education should be treated equally.

The march to Whitehall and rally in Parliament Square, organised by unions and The Association of Colleges (AoC), saw principals join staff and students to protest against funding cuts in the sector.

Satwant Deol, principal of Henley College in Oxfordshire, who has never been to a rally, told The Independent: “I am having at the moment to cut courses and it has an impact on our young people.”

She added: “I have been a deputy principal and a principal for nearly 18 years and this is the darkest time we have ever had in further education colleges.”

Freya Ruparel, a 17-year-old who attends Henley College, has lost access to specialist teachers and she is concerned that it will have an impact on her chances to get into university.

Ms Ruparel, who has an interview with Cambridge University, said: “I chose college because of the amount of courses available, and now they are being cut and we don’t have those specialist teachers. Trying to get A grades without the teacher in my chosen subject is tough. We just have people who are trying to fill spaces. They should have teachers who know what they are talking about.”

She added: “My teachers can’t print out summary sheets. We have fewer computers in the room. You can bring in portable devices in but most people do not have the money for this.”

Kitty Howarth, who works at Nottingham College, told The Independent: “The funding cuts are really affecting the quality of teaching that we can give. The infrastructure is crumbling. Computers are 16 years old.”

She said: “Every area is deeply affected. We have a fifth of the support for additional learning needs that we had four years ago. FE is the Cinderella of the sector. It has always been worse off.” On the march, she added: “It is unique that it is the management and the unions coming together. It is really heartening to see.”

Protesters held banners which read ”FE funding an investment not a cost“ and ”Make my future fair“. One protester dragged a replica of a coffin which read: “Tory cuts are killing Further Education”.

There were also chants of “We want more money”, and ”When they say cut back“ with the crowd replying ”We say fight back“.

Some colleges shut down for the day to allow staff and students to attend. New City College in Redbridge said it was closing to allow staff and students time to ”raise awareness“ of the demands.

More than 31,600 people had signed an online petition calling for ”increased funding to sustainable levels“ and declaring that ”all students deserve equality“ by the time the march got under way.

Last month, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) revealed that funding per student in sixth forms has fallen by more than a fifth (21 per cent) per student since 2010-11.

And funding per student for 16-18 year olds in further education has fallen by 8 per cent in real terms since 2010-11 – and it is now at around the same level as during the late 2000s.

The protest in central London came as businesses warned this week that the UK risks being left behind if the government does not address the skills gap through education

More than half (51 per cent) of SMEs are experiencing difficulty finding employees with the right skills compared to five years ago, according to research by the AoC.

Anne Milton, apprenticeships and skills minister, said: “Our schools and colleges have a vital role to play in making sure people of all ages have the skills they need to get on in life, and I would like to thank them for their hard work. I am very aware of the funding pressures in further education which is why we are conducting an assessment of education, funding and the sustainability of the sector.

“This government plans to invest nearly £7bn this academic year to make sure there is a place in education or training, including apprenticeships, for every 16-19 year old, and we have protected the base rate of funding for 16-19 year olds until 2020. We are also investing in the sector as we introduce our new gold standard T Levels from 2020, which will be backed by an additional £500m every year once they are fully rolled out.”