Email from Gabbie Jerrit, the Chair of Governors
7th March 2025
Dear Parents and Carers of children at Western Road Community Primary School,
Further to the letter sent by Mrs Wooler on 4th March 2025, the National Education Union (NEU) members of staff at Western Road Community Primary School have voted for strike action in response to proposed changes to the school’s staffing structure from September 2025.
It is the Governors’ responsibility to ensure the financial viability of the school: strict rules forbid us from allowing the school to go into deficit. Sadly, our school’s overall income is set to fall substantially next year and is not currently forecast to recover in the years ahead. According to our latest projections, if the current spending patterns are maintained, the school will be in substantial deficit in each of the next three years, amounting to approximately £180,000 (or 16 percent of our budget) by 2027-2028.We have had no choice but to look at ways of securing a balanced budget next year and beyond. As staffing is by far the largest element of our spending, we have had to look at staffing costs.
The school’s budget position has already changed since the restructuring proposal was first issued for consultation, in January 2025 and the consultation is ongoing. No final decisions on future staffing patterns have yet been made, but a small reduction in posts is likely. It’s a tricky situation because it depends on lots of moving parts, including what individual members of staff decide to do, and what the school needs to keep in place to ensure the continued effective running of the school and to maintain the standard of education that we are so proud of, within a limited budget. We are doing our utmost to do everything we can to support all children.
We sympathise with how upsetting and destabilising this current uncertainty feels for staff and the school’s community. We recognise how very hard the staff at Western Road Community Primary School work and the contribution they make to the success of the school.
We would like to assure you that, despite the state of national school funding, we will continue to do all we can to resolve this dispute. The staff and governors remain dedicated to the children of Western Road Community Primary School.
With very best wishes,
Gabbie Jerrit (she/her)
Chair of Governors at Western Road Community Primary School
On behalf of the Governing Body