Medway News :- Cuts strike Medway education.

As the ripples of the economic crisis continue to spread out to the local councils a new outrage has struck the Medway towns.
Local school, Delche Street primary, is looking to fire teaching assistants with the aim of putting the money towards hiring qualified teachers, thusly cutting the class sizes. Parents are so angered that they have begun a petition amassing 100 signatures.
One to one contact is very important for children at school and TA's provide invaluable support to teachers too. However would it not be better to halve the class size from 48 to 24? Would having more teachers not provide more jobs for our often over looked graduates and attract more professionals to our towns?

Further outrage strikes at Skinner street primary where catering staff are set to be laid off and the children will have to clear their own plates!!!
Shirelle Smith (19) says:

I don't think that it's right that the kids should have to clean their own plates. It's one thing to do it at home but not when you are at school.

Well quite. Why should children learn to be tidy and put litter in the bins? I know that it is probably an inconvenience and under better financial circumstances it would be amazing to have someone available to clean up after you. I could understand the complaint if you paid for the service as you did in a restaurant but...
Would the parents prefer the school to cut its budget in education facilities instead?

In other cuts news Medway council are under fire for using external consultants at high rates and laying off 97 staff. If this allegation is accurate then the council has a lot to answer for, especially if the consultants being used are for jobs that have recently been vacated. Yes it is acceptable to use this services for cover etc but to remove an officer who receives a salary of £30k and hire a consultant for a one off fee of £4k per job; All you need is to call out the consultant ten times and you have already over spent by £10k.
Greater transparency of council figures is needed as well as public scrutiny. After all its our money and our town services. It is also down to opposition parties to have more of a say and call them to account.