LOCAL LIBERAL DEMOCRATS WELCOME NATIONAL POLICY COMMITMENT ON EDUCATION

1.01.00am GMT Tue 9th Feb 2010

Christopher Townsend at a local S W Herts School

Today Christopher Townsend, the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for South West Hertfordshire, welcomed his party's commitment to spend an additional £2.5billion on education each year.

"Committing to spend this amount of money is a bold step and is not currently matched by the other parties" he said. "It will make a real difference to children living in Dacorum and Three Rivers, where an extra £5.5million could be used to lower class sizes and offer special support to pupils who are struggling. Importantly, this commitment will come at no extra cost to the taxpayer."

The national policy, announced last week as the 'Pupil Premium,' will be paid for by cuts in the tax credit system - which the Liberal Democrats promise to reform - 'quangos' and administrative savings in the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Under a Liberal Democrat government, £2,500 will be allocated annually to each child eligible for free school meals. So the more disadvantaged pupils a school has the more it will receive in additional investment. In the borough of Dacorum, approximately £3.9million would be invested in pupils eligible for free school meals; and in Three Rivers: £1.6million. In total, Hertfordshire would receive £33.9million per year.

The Liberal Democrat leader of Three Rivers District Council, Ann Shaw, believes this policy commitment is much needed. "It would," she commented, "provide the extra educational resources that would make a huge difference in the less affluent areas of South West Hertfordshire, where school budgets are very tight."

Christopher Townsend said "a sound education is important to all of us. The Pupil Premium will go a long way towards ensuring that children in this constituency and elsewhere are offered equal opportunities, irrespective of their background."