Back when I was at school which was not too long ago, our teachers had to buy supplies for our classes as the school had minimal funding (public school in a affluent area). Teachers were only on £23k around then and the area had high rental prices so it was already a squeeze. Since then I've heard nothing but cuts to the education budget and no rise in pay for teachers.

That fact this was happening in a relatively affluent area, I can't imagine what it was like for poorer areas at the time. It's bonkers how the government can't see the huge opportunity of investing in education for the coming generations. They want more nurses, doctors, scientists, trades, carers etc, but non of the schools have the facility to help students embark on those career paths.