ANGRY headteachers in Worcester have revealed their fury - after it emerged school funding could be cut 10 per cent over the next five years.

Bosses at secondaries say they fear Worcestershire's schools will end up "unviable" if new proposals by the Government become reality.

They have also told your Worcester News they will have to slash the curriculum, axe staff or go into debt to survive under what they insist is a "disaster" scenario for children across the whole of Worcestershire.

Prime Minister David Cameron has revealed a plan to offer schools 'per pupil' funding which would be protected in cash terms during the next parliament, but not keep pace with inflation during a speech yesterday.

He also wants to convert hundreds more into academies and says an extra £7 billion will go towards extra school places, but that the 'per-student' funds will be a "flat cash" offer which would reduce in value with inflation.

Independent experts today said that would mean a 'real term' cut of between seven and 10 per cent by 2020, leaving county headteachers dismayed.

Sean Devlin, head of Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College in Timberdine Avenue, Battenhall, one of Worcester's largest secondaries, said: "Either we make more efficiencies or we cut the curriculum.

"We won't be able to exist in the black with these sorts of figures otherwise.

"If they protect the flat rate cash sum, I'll be five or six per cent adrift at the very least.

"We have to cover for inflation and pensions, it's a real terms cut."

Lindsey Cooke, from Hanley Castle High School, said: "This would be a disaster for schools and a bitter pill for all of us to swallow.

"We've already made serious savings over the last five years and face a 'real term' cut of seven to eight per cent next year due to rising National Insurance and pension contributions, and cuts to our educational services grant and sixth form funding - asking us to make more just isn't realistic.

"This will leave schools across this county and England unviable. We can't make our money go any further as it is.

"It's very serious and it's the children I feel sorry for, we are doing our best for them."

Neil Morris, headteacher at Christopher Whitehead Language College in Bromwich Road, St John's, Worcester, called the current situation "unjustified and immoral" saying "generations of children have been underfunded" for too long.

In a letter to this newspaper he said the issue should be the defining one for this year's General Election.

Worcester MP Robin Walker says he is still fighting for a fairer funding deal for schools on top of the extra £7 million being handed down to Worcestershire this year - a £97 uplift per pupil.

He has also pointed to Ofsted ratings showing rapid strides in school performance across the county, with more than 90 per cent of primaries and 82 per cent of secondaries now good or outstanding.

Before the 2010 General Election nine per cent of secondary schools in the county were rated as inadequate, a figure which has now fallen to two per cent or just one school, whilst three per cent of primary schools were in that category, representing six schools.

There are now no primary schools rated inadequate in the whole county and just nine per cent are rated satisfactory or requiring improvement compared to 34 per cent in 2010.

Mr Walker said: "I back Worcestershire’s schools. I welcome the improvement in their performance and I will not accept the fallacy that used to be used to say that just because we did pretty well we didn’t need a fair deal on funding.

“I want the best opportunities for every school child in my constituency and I will keep up the fight to deliver that.”

He added: “Worcester’s schools are doing a great job and our city and our county have benefited from the coalition’s education reforms.

“I know that our teachers work incredibly hard to achieve this and to support their pupils and I salute all those, teachers, parents, headteachers and students who have contributed to this impressive performance.

“It is all the more impressive because we know that Worcestershire has been disadvantaged year after year by its funding settlement.”

He also said a meeting of the f40 campaign group, which wants fairer funding to the UK’s worst-funded local education authority areas including Worcestershire, is meeting this afternoon in a session he is chairing personally.

Mr Cameron has called his offer “In Treasury speak, a flat cash per pupil” one.

“I accept that that is a difficult decision for some schools because the amount of cash per child is not going up by inflation, the amount of cash is staying the same,” he said.