Labour’s education reforms a tragedy in the making for pupils, claims Badenoch
The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill makes a series of changes, including to academy freedoms.
Kemi Badenoch has claimed the Government’s proposed education reforms are a “tragedy in the making” for pupils, parents and teachers.
The Conservative Party leader raised concerns over the impact of changes to academy freedoms, including on teacher recruitment and pay, contained in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
She used Prime Minister’s Questions to describe the Bill as “pure educational vandalism” and the “worst of socialism”.
But Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer countered by insisting the Bill benefits children and parents with its support for free breakfast clubs in every state-funded primary school in England, making school uniforms more affordable and introducing safeguarding measures.
He added Mrs Badenoch had “got a nerve” to bemoan the impact of the reforms on special educational needs provision, adding the Government would “fix that mess” left by the Tories.
The Bill aims to ensure all state schools – academies and those run by councils – follow the same pay and conditions framework.
Academies, which are independent of local authorities, currently have the freedom to set their own pay and conditions for staff, and some academies exceed the national pay scales for teachers.
The new Bill would ensure all teachers will be part of the same core pay and conditions framework, whether they work in a local authority-run school or an academy.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has said there would be “no ceiling” to what academy leaders can pay their teachers.
The Department for Education this week said an amendment will be tabled to make it clear that there will be a floor on pay with no ceiling for all state schools.
Other measures contained in the Bill include allowing councils to open new schools which are not academies, and it will end the forced academisation of schools run by local authorities which are identified as a concern by Ofsted.
All state schools, including academies, would be required to teach the national curriculum and the Government also plans to bolster child protection, with a new register of all home-schooled children in England.
At Prime Minister’s Questions, Mrs Badenoch said the Bill could block specialists in other fields from becoming teachers.
She told the Commons: “The Bill implies that doctors are not sufficiently qualified to teach biology, that Olympic medallists can’t teach PE. Why is the Prime Minister closing down routes into teaching when they should be opening up more?”
Sir Keir replied: “She knows that’s not right.
“Look at the provisions in the Bill, but to say there ought to be qualified teachers in our schools should not be extraordinary or opposed, but we had far too many examples in our secondary schools under their watch of teachers missing when we needed maths teachers.”
Mrs Badenoch went on to ask who will benefit from the Bill.
She said: “It’s not teachers, their pay is being capped. It’s not parents, their choices are being restricted. It’s definitely not children, their outcomes will get worse.
“So who is benefitting? It’s the trade unions.”
Mrs Badenoch said the unions are “finally getting their way” after 15 years, asking: “Why is the Education Secretary allowing trade unions to run her department and ruin children’s education?”
Sir Keir replied: “The Bill benefits the children who need the nourishment of a breakfast club. The Bill benefits the families that can’t afford uniforms.
“The Bill benefits the children who are currently out of school and nobody knows where they are. The Bill benefits the children who could be taken out of school by abusers if this Bill doesn’t go through.
“She should change her mind and support these vital provisions.”
Mrs Badenoch said Sir Keir needs to “get out more and speak to schools”, adding: “I was at the Harris Academy this month and what are they saying? That this Bill reverses two decades of progress.
“Imposing Labour’s new curriculum on every school, taxing the education of children with special needs, excluding talented outsiders – the closed shop is back. This is pure educational vandalism.
“Alongside these attacks, removing single-word Ofsted judgments so parents cannot see the standards slipping.
“It is the same old Labour: bad outcomes for all children, excellence for none.
“I know what it’s like to go to a school which didn’t care about standards. This is a tragedy in the making.”
Mrs Badenoch said “key” changes in the Bill were not contained in Labour’s manifesto, asking: “Isn’t that because he knew parents and teachers would reject them?”
Sir Keir said parents and teachers know Labour is committed to standards.
He said: “They’re part of the future, we will continue to focus on standards.
“And she talks about special needs, she’s got a nerve. They know it – there are members opposite who have asked me questions at these Prime Minister’s Questions about the appalling situation of special needs under their watch.
“We’re going to fix that mess, like we’re fixing every other mess.”
