Cuts have damaged morale and pupils, warn teachers

Research by union NUT found that three in four teachers believe austerity has harmed pupils.

Fifty-three per cent said public-sector cuts have had a negative effect on some children and their families and a further 23 per cent said these policies had affected most youngsters.

The poll also revealed a "crisis of morale" among teachers, who feel untrusted by the government and concerned at education policies.

Morale has sunk to a "dangerously low" level in recent months, the survey found. Fifty-five per cent of teachers said their morale was low or very low - a 13 per cent increase since last April.

Sixty-nine per cent said their morale had declined since the general election in May 2010.

And 77 per cent said they did not think the government's free schools and academies were taking England's education system in the right direction.

The same proportion believed the government's impact on education was negative, with only 5 per cent saying the impact had been positive.

Seventy-four per cent said children's educational achievements were affected by their family's income.

One teacher told researchers: "Pupils from low-income families are often disadvantaged by not having access to computers and the internet at home.

"They have fewer cultural experiences such as holidays both in the UK and abroad. They are often undernourished and this affects their ability to concentrate and learn."

NUT general secretary Christine Blower said: "Teaching is one of the best professions in the world but it is also one of the hardest.

"Teachers do not need to be subjected to the continual criticism and undermining of pay and conditions. This survey paints a very sorry picture and is a damning indictment of coalition government policies."

To end the survey teachers were asked what Education Secretary Michael Gove should make as his new year's resolution.

The most popular response "by a long way," said researchers, was "I will resign" or something very similar.