Budget threat to council jobs

By Juliet Dennis

HUNDREDS of social services and teaching posts in Kent will be axed by cash-strapped Kent County Council in its toughest-ever budget.

Government-imposed spending limits under the rate of inflation have forced the county council to scale down its budget.

Social services spending has been slashed by £4.2 million in this year's draft budget. Cuts include encouraging more children to stay with their families instead of moving into state-run homes, slimming down general running expenses and changing transport arrangements.

The Education Committee has agreed on £9 million of budget cuts.

Plans to expand ten nursery schools are to be shelved and discretionary grants to pupils over 16 from families on income support will be chopped.

Some part-time adult education centres may shut and at least 170 teaching jobs in Kent are at risk.

Joyce Esterson (Lab), co-chairman of Kent County Council's Education Committee, said the Government has not allowed for teachers' pay awards. It will be up to the council or the individual school to find funds for statutory pay rises.

She said: "There are 4,000 extra pupils already in our schools but no extra money for them in the settlement from the Government.

"It really is a sad day for this country when the Government itself doesn't recognise the importance of education."

Kent County Council has been holding consultation meetings with headteachers. John Edwards, head of Harvey Grammar School for Boys, Folkestone, accepted the cuts reluctantly.

He said: "It isn't the council's fault. But if cuts have to be made schools will not be able to do their job properly. Hopefully teachers' jobs will be the last affected because classes will be larger and teachers cannot work as well with more pupils to look after."

Neil Slater, head of Dover Grammar School for Boys, said even though his school is grant maintained it will still be affected because it receives its money directly through the county council.

He said: "It is exasperating. We are supposed to produce development plans but how can we do so when the funding goes up and down at the whim of the Chancellor? If the same happens next year the quality of education will inevitably go down."

In the social services budget Linked Service Centres, which organise day care for the elderly, will be hit most by staffing cuts.

The council also hopes to cut transport costs without affecting bus services for the elderly.

A spokesman for Folkestone social services said: "It's a disappointing budget but everything's being done to make cuts where people needing services are not affected. It's still at the draft stage."

 Children's services will suffer a £1 million reduction, and additional cuts of £3 million are forecast in environment, planning and transportation.