News

Secondary schools report bills of as much as £39K a term for Covid safety measures

Governance and management School funding and finance Facilities Government policy Coronavirus Health & Safety
The spiralling cost of Covid-19 safety measures – which for some secondary schools has reached £39,000 a term – has sparked renewed calls for government financial support.


The government has so far refused to reimburse schools for the cost of implementing Covid-19 control and safety measures.

However, analysis this week shows that some schools are being forced to spend as much as £75 per pupil, which almost wipes out the government’s £650m so-called Catch-up Premium, which equates to £80 per secondary school pupil.

The Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) is now urging the Department for Education (DfE) and the Treasury to reconsider their refusal to intervene.

New analysis from ASCL has given an indication of the kind of costs secondary schools are facing.

ASCL general secondary Geoff Barton said he suspects that the Treasury is behind the decision not to reimburse schools but maintains this is a “false economy”.

Register now, read forever

Thank you for visiting SecEd and reading some of our content for professionals in secondary education. Register now for free to get unlimited access to all content.

What's included:

  • Unlimited access to news, best practice articles and podcast

  • New content and e-bulletins delivered straight to your inbox every Monday and Thursday

Register

Already have an account? Sign in here