Cllr Ravi Govindia, the new leader of Wandsworth Council, wants to proote home ownership and parent choice Wandsworth has enjoyed a reputation over the past 30 years as reforming council that delivers the best value local services in the country. We will continue to do this while developing a new agenda which addresses the challenges […]
Cllr Simon Cooke, the Deputy Leader of the Bradford Council Conservative Group, welcomes the range of groups proposing free schools in his city When Michael Gove first launched the idea of free schools it was to a universally negative response from the educational establishment and their left-wing fellow travellers. Comments like this prevailed: “The free […]
Mark Lehain is trying to set up a free school in Bedford – where the Lib Dem Mayor has been re-elected, Mark has not found the council helpful. This is his speech from the ConservativeHome Local Government Conference on Wednesday. Last December I attended a one day conference on free schools & academies organised by […]
Every day comes evidence of the demand to set up free schools. Labour seem to be in the middle of a U-Turn on the subject. The incoherence of the Shadow Education Secretary Andy Burnham's current policy (supporting a free school if Peter Hyman is starting it but not if others are) has thus far escaped […]
Last November the Shadow Education Secretary Andy Burnham he told The Guardian that if he came to power he said that "certainly" that "there would be no more free schools." So far as the free schools already up and running "you'd want to move that system back to a comprehensive system". Explaining his opposition, he […]
John Bald, an independent educational consultant, and blogger gives an insiders account of the fall of Ofsted Chris Woodhead’s resignation as chief inspector of schools (HMCI) was followed by a difficult period while New Labour got its man in place. Mike Tomlinson, who had been responsible for quality control in theorganisation and had built its […]
In the same week as Peter Hyman's plans for free school in Newham were announced comes news of another one for the borough. Yorkshire Nationwide Schools is proposing one for Beckton. Their chief executive John Morahan says: “Our proposals are about certain criteria. “I hesitate to use the word ‘failing’, but if you look at performance […]
The Spectator reportsthat a free school is planned for Newham. The man behind it is Peter Hyman, Tony Blair's former Director of Strategy. He was the man responsible for the slogan "Education, Education, Education." He left Downing Street for teaching and is a deputy head in Islington. Lord Adonis is also involved. Toby Young also […]
Matthew Barrett John Denham, Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, tabled an urgent question yesterday evening, following news about off-quota university places. It allowed the Minister, David Willetts to make his position clear (emphasis added): Mr John Denham (Southampton, Itchen) (Lab) (Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation […]
John Bald, an independent educational consultant, and blogger says the axe should fall on the "training" run by the educational Quangocracy New Labour, particularly Blair and his long-time head of policy, David Milliband, understood the cycles of democratic government well enough to see the need to use office to tie up opponents after they’d gone, and […]
John Bald, an independent educational consultant, and blogger says cuts should not be focused on small libraries in rural areas Linton library issued over 8,000 books to children in the last year, and is under review, with thirteen others that have been recommended either for closure or for catastrophic budget cuts in a review by consultants that […]
Parents in villages to the west of Wokingham are fed up that their distance from secondary schools which means they "find themselves at the bottom of the list which takes away any choice." They have come up with a proposal for a free school. Thus far 365 have signed up to support and a partnership has been […]
Warrington Borough Council is a unitary authority with a Lib Dem/Conservative coalition. There are 23 Lib Dem councillors with six Conservatives thus making 29 against the 28 opposition Labour councillors. With a third of the seats up for election on May 5 this must be right at the top of Labour targets. I'm disappointed the […]
Some free schools get more attention than others. The one opening in my ward this September, the West London Free School, founded by Toby Young has already attracted a lot of attention. I suspect that Katherine Birbalsingh's Michaela Community School in Lambeth is sure to be one of the high profile ones. I very much hope […]
John Bald, an independent educational consultant, and blogger says use of phonics is crucial to teach English - but not enough Every alphabetic system works on the basis of representing sounds by means of letters. Blending information from these sound-letter links in order to read, and putting information about sounds into letters in order to write, is […]