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Redundancies cost county £5 million
DORSET County Council has given nearly £5 million in redundancy payments in the last five years - and many of its lost posts are teachers.
Figures show the council has paid £4,705,163 since 2003/4.
The bill covers the loss of 353 part and full-time staff. About 140 were teachers.
Harry Turner, council head of pupil and school improvement, said: "In Dorset, in line with the national picture, in recent years there has been a sharp decline in the number of school-age children.
"This has led to the reduction of the number of teachers required in Dorset schools."
Dave Bowen, Dorset National Union of Teachers secretary, said 20 schools were affected by redundancies last year - losing between one and three teachers each.
He said: "With costs rising and pupil numbers falling, schools are clearly in trouble.
"Some schools have gone through this process for three years running.
"Falling pupil numbers do not reduce the jobs that have to be done so someone has to pick up extra work somewhere.
"Morale also takes a dent when people leave because others wonder if it is going to be them in a year's time."
He said most teaching redundancies had been voluntary - typically involving people due to retire soon.
Dorset County Council said about 60 per cent of the payout went to teachers - about £2,800,000. The rest went to other council employed staff.
A council spokesman said: "The bulk of redundancies have arisen in schools, largely due to falling roles and budgets reducing accordingly.
"Whilst the county council has an advisory role it is ultimately the responsibility of individual governing bodies to make decisions about redundancies in schools."
The council's highest redundancy payment came in 2005-6 when 96 staff lost their jobs and £1,247,147 was paid out.
Two years earlier the payment was £330,105.
Savings from axed posts usually come within two years, the council spokesman said.
Figures were released to the Dorset Echo under the Freedom of Information Act.
11:57am Monday 24th March 2008
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CommentPosted by: JamesY, Dorchester on 12:04pm Mon 24 Mar 08
Ah yes, school numbers are falling.
That's why its virtually impossible to get a school place in Dorchester.
Ah yes, school numbers are falling.
That's why its virtually impossible to get a school place in Dorchester.
Posted by: DingDonG, Wilds of Wiltshire on 7:01pm Mon 24 Mar 08
Guess the 70 pupil per class idea will cost a few more million in redundancies?
Guess the 70 pupil per class idea will cost a few more million in redundancies?
Posted by: maximus, Weymouth on 10:37pm Mon 24 Mar 08
Yes Jim Knightwould know all about large class sizes. It turns out that he is an old boy of Eltham college, a fee-paying school housed in an 18th-century mansion in southeast London.
Yes Jim Knightwould know all about large class sizes. It turns out that he is an old boy of Eltham college, a fee-paying school housed in an 18th-century mansion in southeast London.
Posted by: free wessex, dorset on 11:18pm Mon 24 Mar 08
[quote]DORSET County Council has given nearly £5 million[/quote]
NO WE HAVE JO PUBLIC!!
DORSET County Council has given nearly £5 million
NO WE HAVE JO PUBLIC!!
Posted by: maximus, Weymouth on 11:57am Tue 25 Mar 08
As [bold]free wessex[/bold] says above, DCC do not have any money other than that which is generated by parking fines. ALL the money which they so freely seem to distribute comes from the taxpayer, either directly in dorset or indirectly though national taxes (after the government has taken it's slice to pay civil servants and provide bloated expences and pensions for MP's and civil servants.
As
free wessex says above, DCC do not have any money other than that which is generated by parking fines. ALL the money which they so freely seem to distribute comes from the taxpayer, either directly in dorset or indirectly though national taxes (after the government has taken it's slice to pay civil servants and provide bloated expences and pensions for MP's and civil servants.
Posted by: Jon G, Bridport on 1:24am Thu 27 Mar 08
Didn't anybody think "hey, let's keep paying these (mostly older, experienced, wiser, authoratative) teachers and REDUCE class sizes at the same time. That way, we may achieve better educated children. Oops; there, it seems, is the rub.
Perhaps the preferable state of affairs is to achieve a LESS well-educated school-leaving talent pool, the more easiy to manipulate, con and generally 'keep in their place'.
1) More people in Britain (immigration all over the place = MORE, not less, children
2) Less need for teachers and Post Offices (NOT) - I know, let's spend the public's money putting people out of work, deprive them of valuable service and education and then we'll have ourselves a right old - ooops! MESS
"Mission Accomplished" anyone?
Didn't anybody think "hey, let's keep paying these (mostly older, experienced, wiser, authoratative) teachers and REDUCE class sizes at the same time. That way, we may achieve better educated children. Oops; there, it seems, is the rub.
Perhaps the preferable state of affairs is to achieve a LESS well-educated school-leaving talent pool, the more easiy to manipulate, con and generally 'keep in their place'.
1) More people in Britain (immigration all over the place = MORE, not less, children
2) Less need for teachers and Post Offices (NOT) - I know, let's spend the public's money putting people out of work, deprive them of valuable service and education and then we'll have ourselves a right old - ooops! MESS
"Mission Accomplished" anyone?
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