Department of Education and Children confirm major cut backs

From September the Department will cut back its provision of free pre-school education for children not yet at school age.

Part of the funding released from doing this will go toward helping parents affected by the closures with placing their children in nursery education.

It's also proposed that Bride Infants' School will close from September, with the few pupils it has transferring to Andreas School.

The Department will also cease operation of the Family Library in Westmorland Road and Mobile Library, with primary modern language service also scaled back.

The changes will result in the reduction of 31 full time posts over two years, these including teachers, an education support office and civil service positions.

In addition to the rationalisation measures the Post Grad teacher training course delivered at the Isle of Man college will not run next year.

Commenting on the cutbacks DoE Minister, Peter Karran said, ‘The Department, like all other Departments of Government, is faced with rising wage bills and loan charges, greater take up of free school meals and many other inflationary factors and has had to make very difficult decisions over spending in the face of the real-terms reduction in its budget in 2012/13'.

Primary and secondary education alone will cost the Department £47.5m in 2012/13, with a £9.7m reduction in the Department's budget.