Dan Rogerson MP for North Cornwall

Local Liberal Democrat MPs have called on the Education Secretary, Michael Gove, to ensure that funding allocated to Cornwall under the previous government’s Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme is retained in Cornwall.

Conservative Education Secretary Michael Gove announced this week that the scheme would be scrapped, but sought to reassure MPs in a letter after his statement that capital investment in schools would be maintained.

The Secretary of State said, “the cancellation of BSF does not represent the end of capital investment in schools”.

In a letter to Mr Gove, Dan Rogerson, Andrew George and Stephen Gilbert say, “You will be aware that the Cornish per year, per pupil funding level was approximately £350 lower than the national average under the last Labour government… a cut in the capital budget would clearly damage our chances of addressing that problem.  It is therefore vital that, however it is administered in the final event, the capital fund for new school buildings is maintained.”

Stephen Gilbert, MP for St Austell and Newquay said:

“I am sure that pupils, parents and staff are as keen as anyone to see money saved on bureaucracy, but that doesn’t mean the savings should drift back across the Tamar to other parts of the country.  It should be spent on Cornish schools.

“The last Government valued Cornish children at hundreds of pounds less per head than those from London.  This Government must redress that balance, and continued investment in new buildings will be a vital part of doing so.”

Andrew George, MP for the West Cornwall constituency of St Ives and the Isles of Scilly added:

“The announcement is a massive blow to not only Humphry Davy School, but to other schools like Helston Community College which need and deserve substantial capital investment.”

“The last Government said that Cornish children were worth less than the average for England.  Now the next Government are planning new initiatives, like academies and free schools above core support for mainstream schools.”