LIVERPOOL schools are to be asked to foot a £15m bill to give equal pay to staff like cooks and cleaners.

Last night, headteachers and union chiefs attacked the council plans and warned pupils would be the victims of any extra strain on already tight budgets.

But education chiefs insist asking council-run schools to cough up was a “legitimate charge” and stressed those affected should be able to spread the extra payments.

The huge bill is the estimated amount the local authority will have to meet in order to settle equal pay claims among school staff.

Across all sectors in the city, around 7,000 workers, mostly women, are set to receive an average £8,500 each as part of the total £60m claim.

A large portion of those claimants are employed by schools, including dinner ladies, caretakers, and cleaners.

And a new report confirms the council is looking to pass on the cost to its schools, which would have to pay either a one-off lump sum or more likely an annual capital charge over a yet-to-be decided period.

The council report states: “There is a need for schools to prudently set aside sufficient budgetary provisions to meet the cost of (back-dated) equal pay from 2009-10 onwards.”

But it also stresses “the authority is fully aware of the potential impact of such costs on schools” who will be given the option to “spread the costs over a longer period”.