Schools North East were delighted to welcome local MP and shadow education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, to speak at our annual Academies Conference on ‘Raising Standards for Every Child’, setting out Labour’s vision to match the ambitions of children and young people.
Welcoming the Shadow Secretary of State for Education, Chris Zarraga Director of Schools North East thanked her for her regular attendance at our MP’s Roundtables since 2010, always being willing to engage with NE school leaders to try and understand the detail of what they face day to day. Bridget Phillipson is a regular recipient of our ‘Stakeholder Briefings’, ensuring that the region’s parliamentary representatives are kept updated on the issues and challenges our school leaders face as they go through each academic year.
Chris framed her speech with a reminder to all politicians that so-called ‘covid problems’ are nothing of the sort; they are perennial issues that NE schools have had to deal with for many decades, exacerbated even further by the pandemic. And to reiterate that effective education policy can only be formulated if underpinned by the apolitical principles in the SNE ‘Manifesto for NE Education’; these will be vital in fostering policy that will liberate our schools and transform education not just in our region but beyond.
The Shadow Secretary of State said that while she wasn’t interested in ‘wholesale structural reform’, the current system is ‘fragmented, opaque, and over-complex’ and a ‘mix and match landscape of maintained and academy schools’. As such, Labour would seek to ‘smooth the differences’ between academy and maintained schools.
She added that ‘schools should be working together for the benefit of the local communities they serve’, however, too often schools are incentivised to compete against each other.
On Ofsted, Phillipson noted that school structures and responsibilities had changed drastically since the inspectorate was first created. Too often, she said, school leaders feel exposed, with the risks of a bad inspection outweighing the rewards of a good one. Labour would seek to end needless micromanagement of schools, with a clearer purpose of inspections to support schools.
The Shadow Secretary of State also spoke frankly about the challenges a Labour government would inherit, in particular the crisis in recruitment and retention. She recognised that this wasn’t simply a matter of school staff pay, but also about valuing the profession.
Labour, Phillipson said, would use money raised from ending private schools’ tax breaks to support our teachers recruiting thousands of new teaching staff, and making sure teachers are not burned out because they’re covering their own job and someone else’s. She promised new opportunities for staff training, to ensure schools can better support children and young people with SEND, those with English as an additional language, and ensure the development of curriculum expertise.
She also recognised the wide range of responsibilities schools had taken on, and that schools can’t change all that happens beyond the school gates. Labour would seek to increase opportunities for children and young people, with thousands of new careers advisers in schools, as well as support for digital skills, to ensure students are ready for work.
Whilst welcoming the ambition and intent behind Ms Philipson’s statement, Chris Zarraga said:
“any policies that Labour or any other party announce must be judged through the lens of our ‘Manifesto’: policy must recognise the regional context – some areas have been hit far harder than others pre and post covid and have always lacked the existing infrastructure to make up for this. There must be a real commitment to contextual data so that we can understand the actual problems. Evidence-based policymaking must be exactly that – what does the evidence say we should do, not decide to do something then look for evidence that might agree with you. We need a long term view of education, a clear plan, and a joined up approach from cabinet to the chalkface and other departments that ensures greater support for Early Years, that all pupils can access an appropriate and broad curriculum; and Targeted support for those with the greatest needs – it has never been more important to recognise that one-size-fits-all won’t get us anywhere, even back to Feb 2020. “
Chris continued:
“We must actively promote a positive, accurate narrative about North East education. The job that North East schools have done throughout the pandemic and beyond has been extraordinary. Our school leaders have stepped up to the plate again and again. But to be fair they were doing that well before the pandemic. The region has so much to shout about. I can only watch in awe at the job that they do every term of every year and the education system must recognise and celebrate that long and loud.”
Schools North East will continue to lobby on your behalf, through our regular roundtables and stakeholder briefings, as well as engagement with key policy makers.
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