PARENTS and teachers are holding a demonstration to highlight the dratsic decisions schools are having to make to survive.

National campaigning organisation Save Our Schools (SOS) has gathered headteachers, teachers, parents, councillors and MPs to meet at Brighton Palace Pier today at 4pm.

The campaigners will be displaying a large banner which details how schools are suffering from funding cuts.

They will also reveal how some schools have resorted to asking parents for monthly donations to fund essentials and are cutting back staff and work hours.

Alison Ali, mother of twin eight-year-old girls, is one of the organisers for the SOS Brighton and Hove branch.

She said: “I am aware of what’s been happening to schools in Brighton for a few years and I decided it was time for parents to take action and to have our voices heard.

“We did a survey on all the schools in Brighton and Hove and at the end of last year.

“More than 88 per cent responded, and almost 50 schools are cutting front-line staff, equipment or cancelling building repairs.

“One headteacher even said to me ‘I’m not sure there is much more left to cut’.”

“SOS was founded last March and we have been working with teachers, headteachers and parents.

“Our message is clear. Funding cuts will affect children’s futures and the quality of teaching. The Government is very short sighted.”

Ms Ali added schools have been using fundraising money to pay for essentials.

She said: “We don’t want a system where headteachers are put in a difficult position to make sacrifices that will affect pupils’ learning experience.

“We don’t want teachers to choose between cutting school developments and teaching assistant staff jobs.

“We don’t want schools to be constantly scrambling around looking for funding.

“Lots of schools are asking parents for monthly donations of £30. Many parents have accepted that this is a normal request from schools, but it shouldn’t be this way.

“Also, money raised from school fairs are not funding for things like playgrounds, but to pay for stationery.

“If you want our children to have better futures, don’t take away funding.

“I strongly urge parents, children and teachers and come along today to tell everyone the distress we are facing.”