JUSTIN MADDERS says children are being badly let down by 'disgraceful' Tory cuts to school funding.

Mr Madders, the Labour Party's parliamentary candidate for Ellesmere Port and Neston, has promised to 'fight for fairness' on behalf of local pupils if he is successful in the General Election.

Of the 33 schools in the Ellesmere Port and Neston, 32 are losing funding. There is a predicted shortfall of £4.8m across the constituency for 2020, meaning each pupil will miss out on more than £400 as a result of the reduced budget.

Mr Madders said: "It's a disgrace that our excellent local schools in Ellesmere Port and Neston are due to lose £427 per pupil in funding from 2015/16 through to 2020/21.

"Many schools are now desperately overwhelmed, as more and more students are competing for fewer and fewer resources. This is compounded by cuts to local council services, in addition to the teacher recruitment and retention crisis. The current settlement is not tenable and our children are being let down."

Just 18 of 533 Parliamentary constituencies in England will have higher per-pupil funding in 2020 than in 2015, according to research by the National Education Union.

It means 83 per cent of the schools will have less money next year than in 2015. Of the 18 constituencies due to receive more funding, 13 are in areas which returned Conservative MPs at the 2017 election.

Mr Madders added: "Cuts in the area represented by the Conservative Education Secretary have not been quite as severe for some reason, and are £265 lower per pupil than in Ellesmere Port and Neston. The Tories may not care about schools in this area, but I do and I will keep fighting for fairness."

Mr Madders, who was elected as MP for Ellesmere Port and Neston in 2015 and 2017, has signed a pledge by the School Cuts campaign to vote against reductions in funding in future.

Further details of the cuts being made locally and across the rest of England can be found at schoolcuts.org.uk.