AN 'EXODUS' of cash-strapped workers fleeing Oxfordshire's living costs will not be swayed by new pay rises, critics have warned.

The one per cent cap on pay rises for teachers and many other public sector professions was scrapped last week, in a bid to boost recruitment and retention.

But though the rises - which apply to teachers, prison officers, military personnel, police, doctors and dentists - were welcomed, one teacher said it was barely a 'ripple in the pond'.

Oxford West and Abingdon MP Layla Moran has refreshed calls for Oxfordshire weighting, similar to that in London, to counter the county's status as one of the UK's priciest places to live.

Witney Gazette: Oxford West and Abingdon MP Layla Moran. Picture supplied by Layla Moran

Though schools, prisons and the NHS face recruitment and retention issues across the board, she said it is fuelled in Oxfordshire by high living costs disproportionate to salaries.

For years Oxford has topped Lloyds Bank's annual list of the least affordable cities in the UK, which revealed this year that property prices were 11.5 times the average wage.

Ms Moran said: "The government must properly address the recruitment and retention crises in our area by fully funding these pay rises and committing now to an Oxfordshire housing allowance."

Earlier this year a petition was started to get Oxford weighting to support NHS staff, signed by more than 7,754 people.

The MP said while young workers happily lived in the county for a few years in a house share, there is an 'exodus' as soon as they want to settle down.

As reported in the Oxford Mail earlier this month, the number of full-time classroom teachers in the county is shrinking.

Separate figures reveal the average salary of all teachers (including in leadership roles) in Oxfordshire is £37,666, compared to £45,884 in the City of London.

Chris Hunt, an assistant headteacher living in Didcot, recently purchased a house in the town.

The Canadian left his last teaching job in South Oxfordshire due to living costs, adding: "I was on the border near Reading and there was absolutely no chance of owning there.

Witney Gazette:

"It made recruitment ridiculously tough; we would advertise jobs and have absolutely no responses.

"At the time of looking, Didcot was the only place in Oxfordshire I could afford, and that was at the top end of my budget."

Since 2012 there has been a one per cent cap on increase in public sector workers' pay, which was lifted earlier this year for NHS workers.

On Tuesday the government announced it would be scrapped for others, with pay rises of up to: 3.5 per cent for teachers, 2.9 per cent for military, 2.75 per cent for prison officers, 2 per cent for police officers and at least two per cent for some doctors and dentists.

Asked if he thought the pay rise would ease recruitment issues, Mr Hunt said the answer was a 'fundamental no'.

He added: "It's not a solution.

"It's a nice gesture but only a proportion of teachers are eligible for the 3.5 per cent rise, and if you work it out in terms of monthly or yearly wages, it's barely a ripple in the pond."

Mr Hunt said some 'outstanding classroom teachers' were vacating the education frontline in favour of leadership, because of pay.

The teacher supported Ms Moran's suggestion of weighting, adding: "Cost of living is easily up there with London.

"It's quite shocking to think the pay scale in Oxford is the exact same as in Manchester, when you look at the discrepancies in terms of costs of living."

Despite the struggle Mr Hunt, who has been a teacher for more than 10 years, spoke fondly of the profession.

He said: "It's about more than saying 'I got that student an A', it's seeing them come back as a well-rounded person and what they've gone on to do.

"That's why you teach - seeing how they've progressed and how you're inspired that. It makes it all worthwhile."

The Department for Education will fund the pay rise for teachers - but will have to find the cash from its own budget, as the Treasury has not allocated new money.

Former teacher Ms Moran, a governor at Botley School, warned this could force cuts elsewhere in the education system.

She said: "The pay rise is a signal that the government recognises there's a crisis, and now they need to get serious about how to tackle it."