PARENT campaigner Helen Donovan from Evesham attended a conference in Chester to show support for a new funding scheme which could bring in another £4m for county schools.

Mrs Donovan joined others at the F40 Conference including Sir Nicholas Winterton, Conservative MP for Macclesfield, and David Kidney, Labour MP for Staffordshire.

She said their presence emphasised the commitment of cross party support for the model for Area Cost Adjustment.

The funding model, she explained, provided an equitable and fair method of funding schools as opposed to the discriminatory method that existed at present.

She said it had been successfully trialled in East Yorkshire and was now ready to be trialled by a number of low-funded LEAs, including Worcestershire.

"Now we can demand that those in power seriously consider the new formula as a viable and fair alternative when the current system comes up for review in 2006," Mrs Donovan said.

She said they felt reasonably sure that it would be granted to Worcestershire before the next General Election.

Mrs Donovan added: "This will be gratefully received but we must remind people that it will not be extra funding but cash which, unlike our neighbouring counties, has been unfairly denied to Worcestershire over many years. Awarding the ACA would only go part of the way to correct the funding discrimination that exists in Worcestershire."

Worcestershire County Council press officer, Tom Preston said the situation in Yorkshire had been monitored and it had been decided to give it a trial in Worcestershire. It was a complicated situation and would take at least a couple of months to complete.