A NEW £36m fund to reduce infant class sizes and raise standards was announced by the Education Secretary Kirsty Williams today.

Directed at the frontline and starting with the largest class sizes, it will target classes where teaching and learning needs to improve and where there are high levels of deprivation.

The money, consisting of both revenue and capital funding, will be invested over the next four years up until 2021.

The latest figures show that 7.6% (8,196) of infant pupils in Wales were in classes of over 30.

Kirsty Williams said: “Our national mission is to raise standards and extend opportunities for all our young people.

“Time and time again parents and teachers tell me that they are concerned about class sizes. We have listened to these concerns, looked at the international evidence, and are today announcing a new £36m fund to address infant class sizes.

“There is a positive connection between smaller classes and attainment, particularly for pupils from poorer backgrounds. This is most significant for younger children, which is why we are targeting this investment at infant class sizes.

“This announcement, linked to our other reforms, will create the space for teachers to teach and for pupils to learn.”

However, the Welsh Conservatives’ Shadow Education Secretary says will not be a “silver bullet” to solving the educational crisis facing Welsh schools.

Questioning how the policy can feasibly be implemented in the face of Wales’ teacher recruitment crisis, Darren Millar AM said: “The scant evidence base for this policy is well documented with a Welsh Government adviser having publicly spoken out against the idea of its implementation back in June.

“Conversely, there is growing evidence of Wales’ worsening teacher recruitment crisis, and so it remains unclear how this policy can be made to work; smaller class sizes mean more classrooms, which in turn demands more teachers - of which our country is in woefully short supply.

“Today’s announcement is little more than a multimillion pound sop to the remaining Welsh Liberal Democrat and will not be the silver bullet to solving the education crisis facing Welsh schools.”

Wales’s largest union for qualified teachers, NUT Cymru, meanwhile, welcomed the establishment of a £36m fund to tackle the issue of large class sizes. The union says that this is a positive step forward but how the money is delivered must be monitored closely.

NUT Cymru Secretary, David Evans, said: “This announcement is very welcome news. Kirsty Williams and the Welsh Government should be congratulated for responding to the concerns of parents and the teaching profession who see unmanageable class sizes as one of the most concerning issues they face. For too long this problem has been ignored. Putting it on the agenda has been a major campaign for the NUT and we are grateful there has been a positive reaction from the Cabinet Secretary for Education.

“Naturally we will have to monitor exactly how this money is utilised. What we do not want to see is local authorities using it to fill holes in their budgets.

The Welsh Government are absolutely right to demand that any and all business cases show explicitly how they will contribute to reducing class sizes. It will be crucial that local authorities are not only clear about how they are going to use this funding, but also that they are accountable at the point of implementation. “If this funding is put to good use it could have a profound impact on an issue that is at the very top of the agenda for teachers, which is why it absolutely must find its way to the front line.”

Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, the largest teachers’ union in Wales, said: “It appears that, at long last the Welsh Government has realised that class size matters.

“However, there is no consolation in being able to say we’ve been telling you this for years, especially when the process that is being put into place to reduce infant class sizes is more smoke and mirrors than an effective funding strategy.

“The only saving grace, which is not included in this announcement, is that the Welsh Government has stated that the Foundation Phase adult-to-pupil ratios will be maintained.

“However, the Cabinet Secretary for Education will need to place the adult-to-pupil ratios on a statutory footing to ensure that both teachers and pupils do not lose out on the vital assistance that Foundation Phase support staff provide.”