Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Schools, colleges and universities will share almost an extra £12 billion over the next four years, Chancellor Gordon Brown announced today.
Schools, colleges and universities will share almost an extra £12 billion over the next four years, Chancellor Gordon Brown announced today.
Head teachers in England will get £540 million to spend as they wish next year, Mr Brown said as he unveiled the Government's public spending plans for 2001-2004.
Education and Employment Secretary David Blunkett said education investment was now set to rise to record levels but it will be tied to further improvement in pupil performance.
A typical English secondary school will see its direct funding rise from £40,000 to £60,000 in 2001-2, the Chancellor told MPs in his Comprehensive Spending Review 2000 statement.
Primary heads will get control over an even larger slice of their budget, with funding for the typical junior school jumping from £9,000 to £20,000 in the same period.
Funding per pupil will have risen by over £300 per pupil in real terms since 1997. By 2003-4, funding per pupil will be £700 higher than it was during Labour's first year in office, officials said.
Higher education will get an extra £100 million in 2001-2 on top of the £295 million announced earlier in the year.
Half the new money has been earmarked for recruitment and retention, in a move designed to stop a 'brain drain' of talented academics and postgraduates to rich universities in the US.
Further education and sixth form colleges will get £50 million for an extension of the controversial performance-related pay scheme to cover that sector.
The figure of £12 billion, which includes the extra resources pledged for the last year of the 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review, compared with an overall £9.7 billion increase between 1998-99 and 2000-1, officials said.
The Department for Education and Employment insisted the increases were real, dismissing in advance any attempt by the Conservatives to accuse ministers of 'double counting'.
That increase in direct funding will be sustained but it will be linked to improvements in pupil performance, the Government stressed.
In an extension of the target-setting agenda, heads in England will have to ensure that 85% of 14-year-olds achieve the required standard in Maths, English and ICT national tests and 80% achieve the same in science by 2007, the Department for Education and Employment said.
And it was confirmed that GCSE students will have to gain at least five A*-C grades by 2004.
Hailing the spending boost, Education and Employment Secretary David Blunkett said it meant investment in education will have risen by 33% between 1998-99 and 2003-4.
That was a better performance than achieved between 1978-79 and 1996-97, when the Tories were in power, he declared.
"It is a 6.6% real average annual growth over four years for education spending in the UK," he said.
"This is the biggest investment in education for at least 20 years."
The enhanced direct payments to schools would make a "real impact in classrooms" and would be welcomed by heads for the freedom it brought, he added.
"This settlement will take education spending to record levels, with real terms increases in education and training in England averaging 5.6% over the period."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments