Privately funded state education?

Countryside Column for Friday 24^th October

Schoolchildren starved of tax-cake

Finally.  Finally the last stage of planning permission for the village’s new primary school has been passed.  Now nothing stands in the way of building work.  Before long children will leave their old, inadequate and appallingly overcrowded premises for the wonderful, modern building on the edge of the village.

Well, the first third of that statement is true.  The rest, sadly, is pure wishful thinking.  The process has been going on so long – nearly fourteen years – that a recession, unwise council investments, and swinging central government cuts mean there is no money to build the desperately needed school.  True, there is some special funding the council can bid for, but we’re competing against urban areas which have serious levels of deprivation.

So muted discussions can be heard round the village wondering if, perhaps, some money might be raised locally to finance all or part of the school.  And here’s the dilemma. I am the first to want to see it built.  I originally stood for the Parish Council because I felt others were obstructing progress.  But should we really have to raise the money ourselves for PUBLIC education? 

We are not a poor village.  That’s to say there are some very well-heeled people about, living in pretty decent houses, driving far from shabby cars. (Though as so often in the countryside that disguises a layer of rural poverty that is not so readily apparent.)  But the point is, that if push came to shove, the village might just raise part of the £4 million needed. 

But wouldn’t that be the start of a slippery slope?  Next time a new local school is wanted, county hall or Westminster would simply say, well let them pay for it themselves.  And that might be in localities where there wasn’t so much money around, or even to areas where there was none at all.

Look what’s happened in higher education.  People are now expected to pay for Uni themselves regardless of their means.

We pay our taxes, and out of them we expect government to finance, crucially, education, health and welfare, with transport, law and order and national security coming close behind.

Isn’t it obvious, though, that the tax revenue cake just isn’t big enough to be divided into sufficient pieces.  But will you hear any party advocating raising taxes come the general election?  I don’t think so.  Which is bad news for our primary pupils.