News

Giving the North East a Voice

Over the last fortnight, Schools North East has been actively contributing to two vital national discussions: providing evidence to the White Working-Class Educational Outcomes Inquiry and hosting a roundtable in Durham with Helen Hayes MP, Chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee; Ensuring the experiences of schools in our region are not just heard but are shaping the debate in Westminster.

The White Working-Class Inquiry: exposing structural inequality

Across England, too many white working-class children, particularly boys, are being left behind. National figures show that just 18% of white pupils on free school meals achieve a strong pass in English and maths, and only 13% of white FSM boys progress to higher education. In the North East, the picture is starker still: the weakest KS4 progress and the lowest A-level top grades in the country.

In our evidence to the Inquiry, Schools North East made three key points:

1. This is not about aspiration or intelligence. Our schools see daily the ambition and potential of their pupils. The gap exists because of entrenched, structural disadvantages that cannot be solved by education alone.
   
2. Fragmented initiatives have failed. From Connexions to Sure Start, from Extended Schools to Opportunity Areas, too many programmes have been launched and abandoned without learning lessons. Each cycle wastes resources and erodes trust.
   
3. The problem is systemic and regional. White working-class underachievement is not confined to a handful of schools, it runs across phases and communities. It is one of the deepest structural inequalities in the country, and of particular significance in the North East.
   

Our message was clear: schools cannot close this gap on their own. Tackling the issue requires a joined-up approach that integrates education, health, housing, employment, and transport around a shared mission for children.

We pointed to lessons that have worked before: the London Challenge, Sure Start, Poverty Proofing, multi-agency hubs; but argued they need to be applied at scale through regional partnerships. The Inquiry provides an opportunity to reset the debate away from blaming schools and towards addressing the underlying causes of inequality.

The Helen Hayes Roundtable: the North East speaks directly to Westminster

Just days after the Inquiry session, Schools North East convened Head Teachers, trust CEOs, and School Business Professionals from SNE Advisory Boards to meet with Helen Hayes MP in Durham. As Chair of the Education Select Committee, Helen’s role is to scrutinise the Department for Education and hold ministers to account on behalf of Parliament.

This was a rare and valuable opportunity for North East leaders to share their experiences directly. The conversation was wide-ranging but united by a consistent theme: policy too often fails to reflect regional realities.

Key issues raised included:

• SEND reform: Leaders welcomed the delay to the White Paper if it means reforms are designed properly. But they pressed for urgent interim action: unblocking paused special school projects, binding health into SEND accountability, and ensuring that new places are allocated on the basis of regional need, not bidding capacity.
  
• The role of health: Helen Hayes stressed that health services cannot remain on the sidelines of education reform. Too often, tribunals can bind schools and local authorities but not health, leaving families and schools caught in the middle. She argued strongly that accountability frameworks for SEND and child development must require health services to be present at the table, with duties as binding as those on schools. Leaders in the room agreed that without health visitors, early diagnosis, and CAMHS capacity, schools are being asked to deliver the impossible.
  
• Ofsted: The new inspection framework’s inclusion focus risks confusion without a clear national definition of inclusion or proper resourcing. Leaders called for SEND training for all inspectors, phase-appropriate inspection teams, and transparency on pilot inspections. There was deep concern about workload, inconsistency, and the cultural failings exposed by the tragic case of Ruth Perry.
  
• Early years and parental engagement: The erosion of Sure Start, compounded by the pandemic, has left schools facing unprecedented school-readiness challenges. Leaders highlighted the urgent need for more health visitors, accessible parenting support, and recognition that school readiness is a community responsibility, not just a school one.
  
• Reform overload: Attendees described the cumulative impact of multiple overlapping reforms — from curriculum and assessment changes to inspection and skills reform — on an already stretched workforce. Leaders urged government to assess workload impact and sequence reforms sensibly.
  
• Child poverty: The North East faces generational poverty, with concentrations of disadvantage that go back decades. Leaders pressed for cross-government strategies,  not piecemeal education interventions, and called for measures such as automatic enrolment for free school meals and Pupil Premium eligibility.
  

Helen listened carefully and acknowledged the importance of understanding regional perspectives and the wider point of how policy made nationally will often fail in regions with a very different context to the one they are thought up in.

A common thread: the importance of voice

Although distinct, both events point to the same conclusion. Whether discussing white working-class outcomes or the wider reform landscape, the challenges facing North East schools are not simply educational. They are structural, systemic, and regional.

Too often, national policy is designed in Whitehall with little thought for how it will land in regions like ours. Competitive bidding regimes reward those with the capacity to apply, not those with the greatest need. Inspections are rolled out without definitions, creating anxiety and inconsistency. Initiatives arrive and disappear without addressing entrenched inequalities.

Against this backdrop, a strong collective voice is more important than ever. 

Next steps: turning voice into influence

In the coming months, Schools North East will:

• Follow up on the White Working-Class Inquiry by pressing for targeted, regional strategies that integrate education with economic renewal and civic life.
  
• Continue to engage with the Education Select Committee to ensure North East evidence informs scrutiny of SEND reform, Ofsted, early years, and child poverty.
  
• Press for health to be fully accountable within the education system, with binding duties on health services in SEND delivery, expanded health visitor capacity, and genuine cross-departmental working. Schools cannot carry this burden alone.
  
• Amplify best practice from our schools, demonstrating that the North East is not just defined by disadvantage but also by innovation and resilience.
  
• Work with trustees and Partner Schools to shape our detailed policy asks, ensuring they are rooted in school realities and carry the weight of our entire network.
  

Conclusion

The challenges are daunting, but the opportunity is real. The North East has the partnerships, the expertise, and the will to lead the way in tackling educational inequality. By giving our schools a strong and united voice, Schools North East is making sure that national debates cannot ignore the realities of our region.

And we will continue to make one point crystal clear: health must stand alongside education. From early years and school readiness, through SEND assessment and CAMHS, to long-term outcomes, children’s success depends on services working together. Without health at the table, schools are being asked to deliver the impossible.

Because if we are serious about social mobility, about regional renewal, and about the future of our young people, then listening to the North East is not optional — it is essential.

For every child, for every school, for the future of our region.