A headteacher is appealing for parents to donate items such as paper, crayons and glue sticks as protests about school funding cuts intensify.

Pupils at Kingmoor Nursery and Infant School in Carlisle are being given the chance to ditch their uniform for a day in return for glue sticks, colouring pencils, crayons, paper, soft footballs and skipping ropes.

The equipment-raiser has

sparked an angry response from one councillor, who condemned it as “a [publicity] stunt”.

Headteacher Zoe Turner wrote to parents, stating: “This is all equipment that we are desperately short of and by asking you, we are hoping to highlight the effects of the school funding cuts.”

Her letter calling for support for tomorrow’s non-uniform day at Kingmoor’s infant school comes days after hundreds of people attended a rally in the centre of Carlisle about the funding crisis campaigners say schools are facing.

Tomorrow’s non-uniform day is believed to be part of a national day of action headed by the parent-led Fair Funding for All Schools campaign.


Gareth Ellis But Belah councillor Gareth Ellis has criticised Mrs Turner for issuing the letter.

He said: “There is a way you could table these things and try to inform parents, but asking parents for these and for them to think that their children will not have paper in their classrooms unless they bring some, it is not right.

“This is just about doing a stunt. It will not make a different to how the school functions.”

Parent Claire Pearce attended Sunday’s rally in the centre of Carlisle and supports the initiative.

Mrs Pearce, who has a child at Kingmoor’s infant school, said: “It was a good turnout at the rally, a good crowd.


Claire Pearce

“Another parent put it to the school and said why didn’t we support in another way like asking parents to give a small donation of an item instead of money. I’ve just been out to get some of my things today.”

The national Fair Funding for All Schools campaign is calling on people to take part in its “School Assembly” tomorrow afternoon to raise awareness of funding issues.

On its Twitter social media feed, the Fair Funding for All Schools campaign said of Mrs Turner’s letter: “This school in Carlisle has taken a very pragmatic approach to our national day of action.”

The News & Star has contacted Kingmoor Nursery and Infant School to speak to Mrs Turner but there has been no response.

Concerns about schools funding have gathered apace in recent months since the National Audit Office said schools in England need to make £3 billion in savings by 2019-20.

Ministers have previously said that spending on education has been at a £40bn record high, a figure which will rise to £42bn by 2019-20 as pupil numbers increase.

There are also plans to introduce a new national funding formula to make the current system fairer but it could leave thousands of schools worse off.

The three main political parties have made pledges about education and funding in their election manifestos.

Schools funding had become one of the key battlegrounds for candidates in the run-up to the General Election before campaigning was suspended after this week’s terror attack in Manchester.