TEACHERS and support staff at Tavistock College have been warned that redundancies may have to be made as the school faces a financial shortfall.

It is understood that the college will have a £600,000 shortfall over the next two years and a decision on the number of posts which may be lost will be made in the New Year.

A spokesman for Devon County Council confirmed that the school and governors were looking at making some savings on the budget:

'There may have to be some redundancies but the college will endeavour to make these voluntary,' he said.

He added that schools in Devon had been struggling with budgets for a considerable time and had long been campaigning for a fairer system of funding from the Government.

The county currently ranks 146th out of 149 local authorities in terms of money allotted to spend on pupils.

'Eighty five per cent of school funding goes on salaries for teachers and other staff and this is the same throughout the county, as are other costs like books and equipment, yet the difference between what pupils get in Devon and the national average is £350,' he said.

Chairperson of Tavistock College governors, Mandy Govier, said based on the current pupil population, which was around 1,750, the funding difference would be £612,000.

'That would pay not only for a lot of teachers but also a lot of facilities in the school,' she said.

She said schools in remote counties like Devon faced high transport costs having to bus children in from large rural areas, but this was never accounted for when the school got its financial settlement from the Government.

'We have gone down the list in terms of the funding we get per pupil and with costs rising we are going to have a tough time ahead of us,' she said.

Which jobs and how many were under threat was something the school and governors had not reached a decision on yet, added Mrs Govier.

'We have decided that we have to face up to this issue as soon as possible before the effects are felt by the students as their education and wellbeing is paramount to us.'

She said the governors would be joining West Devon MP Geoffrey Cox in lobbying for fairer funding for Devon.