Primary school launches £20k fundraising campaign to provide necessary teaching and resources for pupils

Rural school in Worchestershire will hold a series of events to raise 'much needed funds'

Bayton C of E Primary School hopes to spend donations on general maintenance of the school buildings and equipment

A school in Worcestershire has launched a fundraising campaign to raise £20,000 amid squeezed budgets.

The cash would allow the rural primary school to still provide teaching and resources for children.

The crowdfunding page for Bayton C of E Primary School, near Kidderminster, says the school’s budget has been "squeezed" and it now needs to supplement finances.

The campaign comes after almost three in four headteachers admitted that they rely on parents’ financial contributions to prop up school budgets amid funding pressures.

Bayton C of E Primary School is planning to hold a number of fundraising events in order to try to raise “much needed funds” for the small school.

It hopes to spend donations on general maintenance of the school buildings and equipment.

Jolanda Simmonds, headteacher of the school, told the BBC: "We get less funding than others as funding is based per pupil and we have 94. Up to 90 per cent of the budget is spent on staffing costs, so 10 per cent is used on everything else. Budgets are less and costs are still high."

The school had no site manager, so painting and refurbishments had proved difficult, she added.

Ms Simmonds said: "The children will have a say on what funding goes on. I'm optimistic we can reach the £20,000 target."

Worcestershire County Council told the BBC that "significant financial pressures" within education was a national issue and it allocated money based on a number of factors.

The council said in its proposed budget for 2019/20 it had included £13.7m to build, extend and maintain schools across the county.