Iain Dalton, Leeds Socialist Party
Campaigners from Save Queensway School and Save Our School Transport held a joint lobby of Leeds City Council against cuts being implemented by the Labour-run council. They were also joined by campaigners, including Unite Community members, holding a day of action against the government’s benefit cuts. I attended as a representative of the Save Little Owls nurseries campaign, following the news that six out of the twelve nurseries the council had proposed to privatise have now been saved. Parents were concerned that private sector nurseries would skimp on SEND (Special Education Needs and Disabilities) provision to boost their profits.
Like many councils across the country, Leeds has been trying to cut anything it is not legally required to provide. This is their justification for closing and privatising nurseries and cutting SEND provision for over 16 year olds.
We’ve won before
Save Our School Transport campaign follows the success of a previous campaign in 2018. The council is trying to place the burden of organising transport to school on the students and their families. They are doing this with bus passes, travel grants and training. That may be suitable for some students with SEND, but not for those with complex travel needs.
Queensway primary school in Yeadon, which has a high proportion of children with SEND, has faced two attempts by the council to close it over the last few years. The latest attempt was stopped due to legal action, but the head and other workers at the school have already found other jobs. GMB union members who work as school support staff brought a deputation to the council calling for a secure future for the school and enhanced redundancy payments for any job losses, due to the emotional toll of repeated uncertainty.
Leeds Trades Union Council has helped pull together campaigns against cuts in an anti-austerity committee in the past. This included drafting a no-cuts amendment to a council budget. Relaunching a body like this could help to coordinate the growing number of struggles of community campaigners and trade unionists against the cuts.
