Call for 16-19 education funding review as report reveals extent of cuts

School sixth forms, sixth form colleges and further education (FE) colleges funding fell by 16 per cent between 2010/11 and 2018/19.

The real-terms cuts are double the rate seen across the schools budget, which fell by 8 per cent between 2009/10 and 2017/18.

Independent research body the Education Policy Institute (EPI), which produced the report, 16-19 Education Funding Trends and Implications, is calling for the government to review the cuts and assess the impact on disadvantaged students.

The report, commissioned by education think-tank Pearson, found that school sixth forms saw the largest cuts in this age bracket.

Funding plummeted 26 per cent from 2010/11 to 2018/19, while in sixth form colleges and FE colleges, it fell by 18 per cent.

The analysis finds that FE colleges have experienced smaller cuts than sixth form colleges. This is because FE colleges tend to attract more disadvantaged students and funding has increased to compensate providers for this challenging demographic.

However, the report warns, student support has fallen dramatically and disadvantaged students do not seem to be attending provision where learning hours have been protected.

On average, real-terms teacher wages in further education colleges fell by 8 per cent between 2010/11 and 2016/17 from £33,600 to £31,000.

Teacher wages in further education colleges are 17 per cent lower than in secondary schools (£36,700).

The fall was less acute in sixth form colleges, where the average teaching wage decreased from £39,900 to £39,000.

The report states that there is a "scarcity of evidence of whether the decline in 16-19 funding has exacerbated the gaps between disadvantaged students and their more affluent peers".