CLASS sizes at schools in York could be set to spiral under Government proposals, a city education chief claimed today.

She said the Government's workload reforms could mean classes of 60 youngsters and have a detrimental effect on learning.

City of York Council's executive member for education, Coun Carol Runciman, warned pupils may have to pay the price for teachers getting more time to prepare. Education Minister Jacqui Smith has said she accepts the Government's workload reforms could mean classes of up to 60 pupils, and that she approves of the moves "if head teachers think it is right for their schools".

Coun Runciman said: "As well as class sizes of 60, some schools face a lack of appropriately qualified staff and may have to make cuts elsewhere in their budgets to fund these changes.

"Teachers need planning, preparation and assessment time, but the Government's suggestion is not a good way forward. I would hate to think that schools in York could feel that they have to increase class sizes because there is no other way to ensure they meet Government guidelines on preparation time."

She said: "It is Liberal Democrat policy to work for smaller class sizes, as all evidence shows that children learn better in smaller classes. The Government has simply not provided enough money to reduce class numbers, which was one of their five key election pledges back in 1997."

Ministers have been forced to backtrack on plans to reduce class sizes, to make room for reforms to teachers' working hours which gives them more time to plan and prepare lessons and carry out assessments.

Some schools claim they lack the resources to cover staff while they are out of the classroom, and head teachers have warned this could mean doubling class sizes or giving unqualified assistants a bigger role.

But a Department for Education and Skills spokeswoman dismissed fears of rising class sizes as "scare stories". She said: "Planning, preparation and assessment is about raising standards, not class sizes.

"More than a third of schools are already ensuring that their staff are entitled to take time to plan, prepare and focus on teaching and learning.

"This has not resulted in any of the scare stories we are seeing today, and is possible because of the increase of more than 130,000 support staff in schools since 1997, working with teachers for the benefit of pupils."

Updated: 10:01 Monday, August 01, 2005