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State Schools (Independence)

I thank the hon. Member for Harwich (Mr. Carswell) for securing the debate and congratulate him on doing so. The hon. Member for Gainsborough (Mr. Leigh) described it as a think-piece debate, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it. At times, it felt like listening to a Conservative party policy forum, but the contribution by my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, East (Kerry McCarthy) provided excellent balance to that. There were also significant and interesting contributions from Liberal Democrats Members. Both the hon. Member for Harwich and I recognise that increasing independence for state schools is essential if we are to deliver the best education possible for all our children and young people. However, like my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, East, I caution that he advocates a much more extreme version from his avowed position of the centre right. I do not feel able to support it, certainly not in its entirety. As my hon. Friend said, the recent Education and Inspections Bill has enshrined the principle of greater independence for state schools—Parliament willing—in law. That has not just come out of the blue. It is the natural next step in the journey that this Government have taken to raise standards since 1997. It is worth reflecting for a moment on that journey to see how far we have come. We have invested record sums in education because it is such a key priority. By 2008, spending per pupil will be twice what it was in 1997. Capital spending has risen sevenfold, so that by 2020 all secondary schools, and half of all primary schools, will be refurbished or rebuilt and will be fantastic places to teach and learn. We are backing up that investment with reform. We have freed up teachers to teach, and delivered on our promise to achieve the smaller class sizes that the hon. Member for Leeds, North-West (Greg Mulholland) mentioned. We are continuing to address behavioural and disciplinary problems, which have caused disruption and mayhem in our most difficult classrooms. The ““Every Child Matters”” programme is tackling problems outside the classroom that impact on children’s ability to flourish and progress, helping to ensure that they are ready and able to learn once they are at school. Far from there being a quango state, which the hon. Member for Harwich alleged, since we introduced the fair funding framework in 1999 the percentage of funding delegated to schools has increased from 79 to 87 per cent. We are making good movement in the right direction on delegating funding directly to schools, and that approach is paying off. Last year, there were record results across the board at 11, 14, 16 and 18. In 1997, just 65 per cent. of 11-year-olds reached the basic standards in English, whereas today the figure is 79 per cent. That means 84,000 more children every year going on to secondary school ready and able to learn. Speeches that, admittedly, tried not to be too partisan still started from the premise that everything in our schools is a disaster and is failing. I do not accept that. The improvements that I mentioned are dramatic, but, importantly, we are well aware that we have not delivered for everyone: only 30 per cent. of children receiving free school meals get five good GCSEs and, as we have heard, one in 10 of those children do not achieve any qualifications at all. I must tell the hon. Member for Gainsborough that we believe that it is unacceptable for 1 million children to be in failing or coasting schools, although I would advise caution over the use of that statistic, given that about 60,000 pupils in secondary schools and 30,000 in primary schools are in failing schools. Hearing that statistic, it would be easy to think that 1 million are in failing schools whereas the real figure is fewer than 100,000, which is roughly what it was in 1997. Every child really does matter, and we believe that every child should have the opportunity to fulfil their potential through the best education possible. That is why I listened carefully to my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol, East and why I share her concern for her constituents, some of whom are being failed by the education they are receiving. That is also why the Education and Inspections Bill sets out a number of ways in which we will achieve that goal of fulfilling potential. Greater independence for schools is an important part of that package, because greater independence for state schools is not only the next logical step. We already know that it works. Independent schools have a number of distinctive features that help to deliver an education that meets the needs of their pupils. The best independent schools are highly accountable to parents and responsive to their wishes, and they develop innovative teaching practices and a positive ethos. They are supported by active and effective governors, and we know that in many cases they deliver excellent results. Equally, we reject the worst of independent schools—fee paying. We abolished the assisted places scheme in 1997 and are proud that we did so. Obviously, we also reject selection, which is a feature of many private independent schools. Schools that have greater independence within the maintained sector are achieving great results. We heard about the excellent progress being made at the city academy in Bristol, and I am pleased that the Liberal Democrats there are actively supporting the creation of new academies. I hope they are also keen to pilot some of the first trust schools. On average, academies have improved their collective GCSE results by five percentage points per year since the first schools opened, and that success can be directly attributed to their greater independence. That freedom and independence allow academies to develop the innovative approaches to the curriculum, teaching and performance management that deliver the results. Academies are challenging the culture of underachievement in our most deprived areas and they are succeeding. Specialist schools also have increased freedoms and are demonstrating that greater freedom works. They are doing so on a much grander scale. Some 80 per cent. of all schools have achieved specialist status. In specialist schools, almost 60 per cent. of children achieve the diploma standard that we discussed in the 14 to 19 White Paper—five good GSCE passes—compared with less than 50 per cent. in non-specialist schools. High-performing specialist schools are taking on a vital role in driving improvement across the system. Some are taking on a second specialism, some are focusing on underperforming pupils and some are taking on training school status, but all are working in partnership with other schools to raise achievement among local young people in their communities. Alongside greater independence, such partnership working will also be central to the delivery of our reform. That independence for schools does not mean that they will all do their own thing in isolation. We do not see any conflict between seeking greater dynamism in the system and collaboration. We want a system of strong self-confident schools with a distinctive ethos working in partnership to respond to parental demand and to meet the needs of every child. Schools benefit a great deal from collaboration with each other. Our objective is to ensure much wider collaboration, embracing all local partners. Academies and specialist schools are proving every day that schools that think beyond the education sector and draw on the energy and expertise of local community groups, local businesses and, of course, local parents can be the most successful. The development of trust schools is the next major step in ensuring greater independence for state schools in the maintained sector. It is the next step in this evolution, not the revolution feared by the hon. Member for Gainsborough. Acquiring a trust will give schools many of the freedoms already enjoyed by foundation schools, and they will be really important in ensuring a dynamic and exciting maintained sector for this country. They will mean greater diversity across the whole system, which, in turn, will mean a genuine choice between high-quality schools that offer different opportunities and specialisms where pupils can develop their own individual talents. The involvement of a trust from the private, voluntary or public sector can improve the ethos and governance of a school. However, there is a distinction between freeing-up schools and ensuring that they have greater independence within the maintained sector, and more independent schools. Working within the maintained sector, we can ensure fair access and opportunity for all; it is independence within important boundaries. I shall not rehearse yet again the debates relating to the Education and Inspections Bill because there is not enough time to do so in order to convince hon. Members of the merits of trust schools. The Bill puts parents in the driving seat. Trust schools will have to comply with admissions legislation and act in accordance with the new school code, just like other schools. They will be part of the local authority family. I am looking forward to that legislation becoming law. It will then be my job to make progress by implementing it. I will also think about implementing those other things mentioned by the hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton (Mr. Gibb). I again thank the hon. Member for Harwich for raising the issue. We both agree that we must get away from the one-size-fits-all approach that too often does not fit anyone at all. Through the Bill and our wider programme for change, we want to achieve greater independence for state schools—not dogmatically for the sake of doing so, but because it can deliver real improvements in standards, building on what works in academies and specialist schools.