SCHOOLS minister Lord Hill will be visiting Waltham Forest next week to discuss funding for schools.

A total of 16 schools in Waltham Forest have missed out on multi-million pound rebuilding projects as part of the government squeeze on public spending.

In July, Education Secretary Michael Gove axed more than 700 projects to rebuild schools around the country.

The money had been earmarked to regenerate exising buildings or help schools move into new ones.

The Government admitted that Waltham Forest would be one of the areas hardest hit by its decision to axe the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme.

Lord Hill will be visiting Joseph Clarke School, a school for visually impaired children in Chingford, on Friday, September 24, where he will meet Mr Duncan Smith along with the head teachers of the six schools in Chingford and Woodford Green which have been affected by the decision to axe BSF.

He will then go on to meet the headteachers of schools in Walthamstow and Leyton.

Lord Hill will then meet Waltham Forest Council leader Chris Robbins to discuss capital spending for schools in Waltham Forest.

John Cryer, MP for Leyton and Wanstead, said: "I'm very pleased that Lord Hill is coming to Waltham Forest.

"However the fact remains that the BSF decision was rushed through with no thought that the consequences could be disastrous for the teachers and pupils.

"Hopefully we can salvage something from this situation which will help the current and future pupils."

Mr Duncan Smith said: “While I supported Michael Gove’s plans to abolish the BSF programme, which was very bureaucratic and wasteful, I am naturally very concerned that this does not mean an end to capital spending for schools in Waltham Forest.

"Lord Hill’s visit on Friday will be an opportunity for Heads to make their individual cases for capital spending to the Department for Education.”

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