Monday, 28 March 2011

Jobs face axe at school music service

SCHOOL music service staff are to be axed under council cost cutting plans.

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Six middle managers would go under plans to cut £144,000 at Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.

The service provides lessons, residential courses and concerts for 1,500 borough children. A November inspection rated the service “oustanding”.

The service, which employs 56 people, will be split into a “music education team” of nine full time staff on standard pay and conditions and a wider team of “instrumental music specialists”, on new pay and conditions.

Redundancy costs of £112,711 are expected, the council said.

It comes as the council prepares to cut all funding to the service from April 1. Schools, fees and the Government fund the rest of the £1.5m service.

Council support has been cut from £300,000 in 2008 to £210,000 in 2009 and £144,000 last year.

This saw higher fees, less staffing meetings and fewer residential courses, yet the council said the “quality of provision did not dimish”.

It said the new cuts are a “very great challenge” and said there is “limited scope” for raising charges more. The proposals will be consulted on further.

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