The government has announced this week plans to invest £10 million into Plymouth, Ashfield & Mansfield, South Sefton & North Liverpool, and North Durham & City, all areas where there is a low proportion of good or outstanding schools.
This follows on from statements from Boris Johnson who pledged that he will be “answering at last the plea of the forgotten people and the left behind towns” as he wants to ‘level up’ those schools in areas where he believes it is needed. The investment would go towards “intensive support” in the four localities and is intended to help schools join strong trusts and drive up standards through a collaborative approach with experienced teachers. The government also intends for there to be a ‘try before you buy’ where schools can temporarily join multi academy trusts to see if they fit with the portfolio of academies already signed up.
Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, said:
“I am determined to focus this government’s resources on the areas of the country where the number of pupils in Good or Outstanding schools is lower than average, as we build back better and recover from the impact of the pandemic. An education at a great school is the best way to make sure pupils are supported to catch up on any academic learning or development they may have missed, and fulfil their potential. The best way to create more great schools is to give all schools the support of a strong multi-academy trust to help them improve. I am encouraging all school trusts today to consider applying for funding to expand and support more schools, particularly in those areas of the country where there are still too few opportunities for children to attend a great school.”
However, Geoff Barton from ASCL commented that “these are piecemeal announcements being portrayed as though they are a grand vision”, with calls growing, including from Schools North East, for the government to announce its “grand vision” of a ‘recovery’ plan. A number of sources have also pointed out that this is not new money which the government is investing in the education system, as up to half of this funding comes from the trust capacity fund (TCaF) with the rest being made up by existing budgets already within the DfE.
