Schools' chief refutes job cuts claim

WARRINGTON’S education chief has refuted claims that hundreds of jobs could be lost at schools across the borough.
Cllr Sheila Woodyatt, (pictured) the borough council’s executive member for children’s services said: “This just is not true.”
The claims followed a consultation meeting for staff at Lymm High School when both teaching and non-teaching staff were warned of impending job cuts over the next couple of years.
Staff were shocked and angered when the potential impact of the cutbacks was revealed – and claimed similar job losses would be taking place at other schools in Warrington.
But Cllr Woodyatt said: “Lymm High School is a unique case in Warrington and some departments are overstaffed. There will have to be a complete restructuring of the school.
“But this is not the case at other schools in the borough and there will not be hundreds of lost jobs.
“The meeting at Lymm High was not a public one – it was for the staff.”
Cllr Woodyatt said some of the cutbacks at Lymm involved the leisure centre rather than the school itself.
She was not able at this stage to predict the actual level of job losses that would be involved.
Earlier this week, the council said schools in Warrington, like others across the country, were facing budget pressures following the changes to funding arrangements made recently by the government.
Although the council was working closely with the schools forum on the issue, school governing bodies had delegated responsibility for their own staffing matters.