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  • John Hayes – 2011 Speech at the iCeGS Annual Lecture

    John Hayes – 2011 Speech at the iCeGS Annual Lecture

    The speech made by John Hayes, the then Education Minister, on 15 June 2011.

    Good afternoon everyone.

    Parliamentary business has to take precedence in a democracy and so sadly I am unable to join you today. But I do want to take this opportunity to underline some crucial points that my able deputy, Susan Pember, will explain more fully later on.

    My passionate belief in the value of careers guidance is well-known. I am convinced that, whatever the excellence of the courses on offer and the relevance to employers of the qualifications to which they lead, you cannot have a truly first-class skills system without a first-class advice and guidance service for learners. Careers guidance changes lives.

    That why, first of all today, I want to thank you, to thank you for all you’ve done, all you do and for the future too. It’s going to be an exciting journey we travel together, the destination – the best of careers services.

    Now, you will have seen the announcements on 13 April about careers guidance policy, reflecting my responsibilities across both the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education. So you know that under the Education Bill currently progressing through parliament, schools will have a new statutory duty to secure independent and impartial careers guidance. Whilst we are committed to freeing schools from bureaucracy, achieving the best career, work and life outcomes for all young people means having the right careers advice.

    It is absolutely right that careers advice must be at the heart of what schools do. We will put into place measures that allow schools to secure the best possible advice in an independent way. I don’t say that schools havn’t done a good job up until now, many have. But guidance frankly has been patchy and too often advice on vocational options has been neglected. I’ve notified schools already that they need to prepare for this new statutory duty from this September and I can assure you that we will exemplify best practice, we will ask Ofsted to ensure that schools take this duty seriously at a management level and we will take further steps, if necessary, to secure that the right advice is given at the right time.

    I believe that head teachers will take this duty very seriously. You know, we believe in trusting heads, governors and teachers to make the right judgments for their schools and there will not be a vanilla flavoured offer, different schools will take different paths that suit their students’ needs, but nevertheless the availability of independent careers advice in our schools is essential if all pupils are going to achieve their best.

    I understand that a significant cultural change is required in moving from a model of central Government blanket support to one where the market plays a stronger role.

    I know that, in that context, the service that’s provided will be tailored, tuned to the needs of different schools and different pupils.

    It is important that schools are held to account for the quality of the services they secure and the impact they have on the progression of their pupils. So, for the first time, we will introduce a measure of how well pupils do when they leave school. These destination measures will be a vital way of assessing the effectiveness of the advice that people have received.

    I want organisations which are part of the National Careers Service to provide information, advice and guidance of such quality that schools will commission their services.

    Giving Schools responsibility is vital to driving up standards.

    But the Service will do two vitally important things:

    First, it will provide a visible public platform which champions the quality and professional standards which I think are crucial for the re-establishment of careers guidance as a true, respected profession.

    Secondly, it will provide services which the market does not, or cannot currently provide. For young people, both in and out of school, there will be a helpline service and access to online information – we will continue to fund a high quality face to face guidance service in the community for adults. Provision of this guidance is crucial for adults because there is no routine institution that is responsible for their needs in this regard.

    But, there is more. The main professional bodies for careers are, for the first time, working as a unified force for professional standards and common principles for guidance, there are now plans to achieve chartered status within three years. This is not a small step, but a giant leap. I wholeheartedly endorse everything they are doing to address the challenge in the most direct way.

    The work that is being done by the profession, informed by the recommendations of Dame Ruth Silver which the government accept and driven by the efforts of Ruth Spelman, and others who are taking up this challenge is essential to delivering the best service in the world, which is what I want.

    I have spoken before, I hope with passion, about the need to raise the status of careers guidance. I want the careers profession to return to a position of public recognition, prestige and value, where guidance is seen as an essential part of life and experience. It is too important for us to do anything other.

    Connexions did good work and I know many of you were involved with Connexions, but its advice in terms of careers was often patchy. I think we ask too much of people to be professional careers advisors and to offer expert guidance on all kinds of other lifestyle issues.

    That’s why we need a dedicated service.

    And so we will develop a strong brand and identity for the National Careers Service, which will act as a beacon in the market, standing for excellence, widely recognised and valued by its customers.

    I believe there is a great cause for optimism. We are on a clear path towards the vision that I set out.

  • Nick Gibb – 2011 Speech to the HMC Deputy Heads Conference

    Nick Gibb – 2011 Speech to the HMC Deputy Heads Conference

    The speech made by Nick Gibb, the then Education Minister, on 7 June 2011.

    I’m absolutely delighted to be here today and I’m grateful to you for inviting me.

    First, because we have much in common. As Minister of State, rather than Secretary of State, I too am a fully paid up member of the ‘deputy club’.

    And secondly, because I’m a huge admirer of what the independent sector has achieved.

    While the state sector has, over the last half century, fallen victim to the vicissitudes of passing educational fads and ideology, the independent sector has remained steadfast to high quality, well-rounded education based on clear evidence of what works best for children and young people.

    HMC schools don’t just set the benchmark for every other school in this country, private or state, to aspire to.

    Their excellence is recognised all over the world.

    And as I saw on a visit to King Edward’s School in Birmingham in January, that success is rooted in independence, freedom and autonomy.

    The independence to develop strong teaching and curricula which maintains academic rigour across the board.

    To adopt high quality, internationally recognised qualifications like the IB or the iGCSE.

    And to use outstanding artistic, sporting and pastoral provision, to create broad-minded young people, ready to thrive in an ever-changing world.

    Our reform programme is based on the same principles of independence – that teachers and professionals know best how to run schools.

    Everything we’re doing is about giving the best state schools the same autonomy to get on with the job – without Whitehall dictating day-to-day details.

    And so today, I also want to set out how the independent sector and its leadership teams can play a part in raising standards across our education system.

    Unashamedly, we want to replicate the best of what the independent sector does – learning and applying the lessons from its success.

    But to do that properly, we need to draw directly on the excellence, ethos, and proven track record – what my predecessor, Lord Adonis, called the “educational DNA” of the independent sector.

    I was pleased to see that that the title of this conference – Meeting the Challenges – suggests independent schools are not resting on their laurels.

    Because the education system is facing some of its toughest challenges in decades.

    How do we meet the demands of business, universities and society to compete in a fast-changing, unpredictable global economy?

    How do we use early years’ provision and schools to drive social mobility?

    How do we drive up standards in the state system in the face of tighter public spending?

    Our White Paper last November, The Importance of Teaching, pointed out that there is much to admire and build on in England’s state education system: hundreds of outstanding schools; tens of thousands of great teachers; academies established and outstripping the rest of the maintained sector.

    But it was also made clear that too many children are still being let down because the system is not fulfilling its potential.

    We’re failing to keep pace with countries with the best education systems – falling back in the PISA international rankings, from fourth to sixteenth in science; seventh to 25th in literacy; and eighth to 28th in maths – meaning our 15-year-olds are two years behind their Chinese peers in maths; and a year behind teenagers in Korea or Finland in reading.

    We’re still not meeting the expectations of employers – with the CBI’s annual education and skills survey just last month finding that almost half of top employers had to invest in remedial training for school and college leavers.

    And we’ve still not closed the yawning attainment gap – which remains unacceptably wide both between rich and poor and between state and private sectors.

    Professor William Richardson’s excellent report for the HMC 18 months ago, showed the top ten universities’ increasing reliance on the independent sector – with 40% of all students on strategically important courses like engineering, science, maths and languages, drawn from private schools.

    And last year’s A-level results also showed a fifth of all entrants in chemistry, physics, maths and biological sciences and almost a third in further maths were independent school pupils.

    But as a nation, we can’t carry on relying on the seven per cent of young people the independent sector educates, to provide such a high proportion of future generations of scientists, engineers, medics or linguists.

    The key to both social mobility and a mobile economy is to realise the potential, ability and talent of young people from all backgrounds.

    That’s why we’ve introduced the English Baccalaureate.

    The Russell Group has been quite clear about the core GCSE and A-level subjects which equips students best for the most competitive courses – English; maths; the three sciences; geography; history; classical and modern languages.

    So the E-Bacc is designed to open up those same subjects to tens of thousands of state pupils currently denied the opportunity.

    We need to take clear action.

    It is a major concern to us that nine out of ten state pupils eligible for free school meals are not even entered for the E-Bacc subjects – and just 4% actually achieve it.

    It is a concern that the proportion taking a modern foreign language GCSE has slipped from 79% a decade ago to just 43% last year – and little more than a third when you take out independent schools.

    And it cannot be right that no pupil was entered for any of the single award science GCSEs in 719 mainstream state schools; for French in 169; for geography in 137; and for history in 70.

    The most academic subjects must not become the preserve of independent schools.

    They should be open to every single student, regardless of background.

    In the modern world, there is nowhere to hide for any school leaver. Jobs can be transported across international borders in a nanosecond. The pace of technological change means that new industries are evolving in the space of months not decades.

    So it is no longer good enough to judge state education simply by how much we spend or against rigid, centrally arbitrated targets – we need to raise our game.

    Our reform programme draws on the clear and consistent evidence base from the leading education systems around the world.

    PISA, OECD, McKinsey and others tell us that despite most developed countries doubling or even tripling their education spending since the mid-1970s, outcomes have varied wildly.

    Because it is not how much they’ve spent on education that counts most. It is how they spent it.

    The strongest systems recruit and develop the best teachers. They have strong leadership. They have internationally benchmarked curricula, assessments and qualifications. And above all, they give schools and professionals freedom to flourish.

    That’s why we are getting rid of much unnecessary, cumbersome bureaucracy that bedevils state schools – slimming down the National Curriculum; scrapping the Self Evaluation Form; focusing Ofsted inspections on teaching; closing down quangos; and cutting the overly complex Admissions Code and hundreds of pages of statutory guidance.

    But we want to go further.

    We want to complete the last government’s unfinished business when it comes to academies.

    We’ve enabled every single state primary, secondary and special school to become independent, autonomous institutions. Free to decide how to use their budgets. Free to vary pay and conditions. Free to decide the length of the school day. Free to offer qualifications in their pupils’ best interests.

    Academies have already proved a force for good in turning around underperforming schools in some of the most deprived areas. Mossbourne in Hackney; the Harris chain across south London and Burlington Danes in Hammersmith are now watchwords for the best of what the state sector can achieve.

    Just as your success is rooted in independence, the evidence is emerging that these early academies’ independence has driven up standards in neighbouring state schools – as new research from the LSE showed last month.

    We’re allowing good state schools to convert to academy status and the demand to do so has far exceeded our expectations.

    It took five years to open 15 City Technology Colleges and four years to open the first 27 Academies.

    But 1244 schools have applied to become an academy in the last 12 months and 430 have already converted – a rate of more than two every school day. A third of all secondary schools are either now academies or in the process of converting. And hundreds more are in the pipeline.

    This is a fundamental shift away from government and towards teachers and professionals.

    Academies are now reforming in ways never foreseen when the programme started a decade ago:

    • established multi-academy chains like Harris and ARK are raising standards in areas failed educationally for generations.

    • the first special schools are going through the application process.

    • the first generation of specialist technical academies are now opening – offering high-quality, work-based vocational education.

    • the door is now open to Further Education and Sixth Form Colleges and alternative provision to become academies through the current Education Bill before Parliament.

    • the first free schools are now set to open from September – and hundreds more coming through.

    Independent schools have already played an important part – acting as lead academy sponsors like Dulwich, Wellington and Canford; co-sponsoring like Marlborough, King Edward School, Bryanson and Tonbridge; or being active educational partners like Malvern, Winchester, Uppingham and Oundle.

    Organisations like ULT, Girls’ Day School Trust, Haberdashers’, Woodard Schools and the Skinner’s Company oversee joint families of academies and independent schools.

    And some have actually converted to the state sector like Birkenhead High School; William Hulme’s Grammar School; Belvedere Girls’ School; and Bristol Cathedral Choir School.

    But as the brakes come off the programme, scores more opportunities are opening up for the independent sector; HE and FE; charities; and business to play a greater role.

    Because crucially, we haven’t forgotten the programme’s roots – to turn round our most challenging, underperforming schools.

    Children only get one shot at education. So we’re clear that we will not hesitate to intervene in weak schools which are letting down parents and pupils.

    And that’s why we’ve appointed Dr Liz Sidwell, the Chief Executive of Haberdashers’ Aske’s Federation, as our new Schools Commissioner.

    Few in education have her track record or experience. And she hasn’t been shy in challenging local authorities and heads to come up with robust improvement plans – brokering academy arrangements; recruiting sponsors; enthusing heads and governors to go for academy status; promoting free schools to prospective proposers; and expanding our existing pool of sponsors significantly.

    Many schools in the independent sector have already established successful partnerships with neighbouring institutions through the Independent State School Partnership scheme. And we want that sort of collaboration to continue through the new national network of Teaching Schools; our Education Endowment Fund; and the National and Local Leaders of Education programme.

    But I believe that formally sponsoring, founding or partnering an academy must be the next logical step for many more independent and state schools.

    Because as academies become the norm in every single part of the system, how the best institutions are judged in the public’s eyes will also change.

    We have a clear expectation that the strongest state schools converting to academies should partner the weakest.

    And I hope that same expectation can apply in the independent sector too.

    Providing an opportunity for the sector to spread its unique ethos, culture and thinking to tens of thousands more children whose parents can’t afford school fees.

    Concepts like Brighton College’s plans for a consortium of independent and state schools to establish a sixth form college in East London to get gifted students to top universities.

    I know some schools have been hesitant to come forward. I understand those who may feel that the independent sector has enough on its plate – with many parents fighting hard to afford fees and many smaller schools striving to keep their heads above water in the current economic climate.

    But many independent schools were born out of a moral drive to help the poorest. That same moral purpose underpins our reforms – to give every single child, of whatever background, the opportunity to make the most of their talents.

    Mr Chairman, in the 12 months that I’ve had the privilege to hold the position of Minister of State for Schools I have done all I can to reduce regulation on the independent sector and I hope we can go further still.

    We’ve recognised the iGCSE in the performance tables – including from this year the Edexcel iGCSE – and we’ve made our admiration for what the sector has achieved clear at every opportunity.

    We all have the same goals when it comes to raising standards throughout the education system and I look forward to continuing to work with HMC and the independent sector to help achieve those goals.

    Thank you.

  • Judith Blake – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II (Baroness Blake of Leeds)

    Judith Blake – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II (Baroness Blake of Leeds)

    The tribute made by Judith Blake, Baroness Blake of Leeds, in the House of Lords on 9 September 2022.

    I thank the Lord Speaker for the opportunity to pay tribute to Her Majesty the Queen today. Like my noble friend Lady Taylor, I am very conscious of the powerful, heartfelt and sincere speeches that have led the debate. I am sure that we are all very grateful for that. I know that all our thoughts are with the members of the Royal Family at this time of deep sadness and loss. I join everyone in sending my condolences to them.

    Over my lifetime, the Queen visited my home city of Leeds on many occasions. My memories go back, as so many have said do theirs, to lining a route as a schoolgirl to watch the royal car pass. I have to say that I will never forget the trauma of my sister losing her flag at the key moment as the car was just about to pass. In fact, I think she is still traumatised more than 60 years later. Even at that very young age, I recognised the enormous significance of Her Majesty’s visit and her interest in our part of the United Kingdom.

    It was my great privilege, 10 years ago this summer, as deputy leader of Leeds City Council to invite the Queen and Prince Philip to launch the Child Friendly Leeds initiative—a central pillar in the city’s improvement journey in children’s services. The Queen, at the same time, reopened the newly refurbished City Varieties—I am sure your Lordships all know the venue of “The Good Old Days” fame. We had a brilliant cast of young people performing fearlessly for her on stage.

    My personal duties included escorting the Queen and Prince Philip from the building in a newly installed glass lift on the outside of the building: what could possibly go wrong? I have to say, I did feel some trepidation at the task, but both the Queen and Prince Philip put me at me ease instantly, and Prince Philip was particularly fascinated by the mechanics of the new lift. Sadly, I was unable to enlighten him on the finer workings of the mechanisms.

    We walked down to Briggate—the main pedestrianised shopping street in Leeds—and I will never forget the roar of delight that hit us as we turned the corner to find both sides of the street thronged with hundreds and hundreds of children from every primary school in Leeds. It was simply breathtaking. I saw, first-hand, how they both interacted with the children and particularly how Prince Philip was assiduous in supporting the Queen so that every child felt included. It was a real pleasure to see them working so naturally and engagingly, talking to so many children and young people; I have never seen so many floral tributes, cuddly toys—you name it—all of the gifts that the children wanted to give to the royal couple. Those children and young people will never forget that day, and I know how much it has inspired them over the years.

    We will always remember the Queen’s extraordinary sense of duty and her commitment to people and communities the length and breadth of the country. Her depth of knowledge concerning organisations and backgrounds to events that she attended was simply astounding, revealing her intense interest in the people she was meeting. I think it was this attention to detail that helps explain why she is so well respected and loved by so many people across the country.

    I am grateful for the opportunity to say an enormous thank you for the Queen’s life, her service, her sense of duty and her extraordinary contribution to public life across the world over the 70 years of her reign.

  • Indarjit Singh – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II (Lord Singh of Wimbledon)

    Indarjit Singh – 2022 Tribute to HM Queen Elizabeth II (Lord Singh of Wimbledon)

    The tribute made by Indarjit Singh, Lord Singh of Wimbledon, in the House of Lords on 9 September 2022.

    My Lords, on behalf of myself and the wider Sikh community, I too want to pass on our sense of loss and sorrow on the death of Her Majesty the Queen. Her passing marks a moment of great sorrow and reflection for us all. As has been said, her life was one of selfless and unparalleled service to her subjects, conducted with both dignity and humility throughout her 70-year reign.

    I have had the good fortune of meeting the Queen on several occasions and being invited to lunch at Buckingham Palace and admiring her wit, wisdom and depth of knowledge. I recall the privilege of accompanying Her Majesty during her first visit to a gurdwara in Leicester in 2002. I remember standing on the steps as the car drew up and the Queen got out a little nervously. Then she saw me and said with a broad grin, “I know him.” It is measure of the high esteem in which she was held by the Sikh community that, in that small gurdwara, after the visit we needed a large truck to take away the many bouquets and posies of flowers.

    It was during her Golden Jubilee celebrations that the Queen made it clear that she was the sovereign for all her people and that our different religions show that God’s love extends in equal measure to the whole of humanity—a resonant echo of Sikh teachings that show the important commonalities between our different faiths. I have been taking part in the annual Commonwealth Day service for many years. One year, it was suggested that the service move away from Westminster Abbey, which allows contributions of different faiths, to another church which did not. The Queen very promptly said, “If you do that, I won’t come.”

    Her Majesty’s commitment to the service of others, contribution to society and humility in all she did are qualities that Sikhs aspire to embody in their lives. Sikhs will always remember her with love and affection.

  • PRESS RELEASE : New Chair of Ofqual – Amanda Spielman [June 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : New Chair of Ofqual – Amanda Spielman [June 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 June 2011.

    Education Secretary Michael Gove recommends that Amanda Spielman becomes the new Chair of Ofqual and Chief Regulator of Qualifications and Examinations.

    Michael Gove said:

    Amanda is an extremely talented and hugely experienced individual whose skills are perfectly suited to this high-profile post. I am delighted she is keen to take the role. She will make sure Ofqual is a strong regulator which holds our exam boards to account and ensures our qualifications are as rigorous as the best in the world.

    Amanda Spielman said:

    Ofqual has an extremely important role in our education system. I am honoured to be considered for the role and I hope to ensure that it sustains its focus and rigour, in maintaining standards and in the regulation of awarding bodies.

    Ms Spielman is research and development director of the academy operator ARK Schools, where she is also responsible for legal, governance and regulatory matters. She was a member of the Sykes review panel commissioned by Michael Gove to review the school assessment system. She is also a chartered accountant and spent more than 15 years in private equity, mergers and acquisitions, and corporate strategy in the UK and the US for Kleinwort Benson, Mercer Management Consulting and Nomura International Principal Finance Group.

    The previous Chair and Chief Regulator was Kathleen Tattersall, who left her post last year. In the interim, deputy chair Sandra Burslem has taken on many of the responsibilities, supported by the chief executive, Glenys Stacey. Ms Spielman, whose appointment is subject to confirmation by Her Majesty at the next Privy Council meeting, is due to start at Ofqual later this summer. The education select committee has waived its right to hold a pre-appointment hearing.

  • PRESS RELEASE : More than 1,200 schools apply to become academies [July 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : More than 1,200 schools apply to become academies [July 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 3 June 2011.

    As of today:

    • 1244 schools have applied to be an academy since June 2010
    • 831 of these applications have been approved
    • 430 have already converted and are open.

    The total number of open academies, including those opened under the previous government, now stands at 704. This is an increase of 46 since the last month.

    Outstanding schools were invited to apply for academy status from June 2010. This offer has since been extended to special schools and any other school that is performing well.

    Strong schools that convert to academy status are expected to support other local schools that could benefit from improvement.

    Academies are free from local and national government control. They are able to focus their time and resources on meeting the needs of their pupils and school, rather than answering to local or national politicians and bureaucrats.

  • PRESS RELEASE : New admissions code – a fairer and simpler system [May 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : New admissions code – a fairer and simpler system [May 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 27 May 2011.

    • New admissions code: more places in good schools, a fairer and simpler system
    • New Chief Schools Adjudicator appointed

    Together the two current codes stretch to more than 130 pages and impose more than 600 mandatory requirements on admissions authorities (local authorities, governing bodies or Academy Trusts). The process is complex, confusing, costly and unfair. The current Admissions Code and Appeals Code undermine parental choice.

    The proposed changes would see two new codes created. Together the two slimmed-down documents will contain around half as many requirements.

    The proposals would:

    • increase the number of good school places available by making it easier for popular schools to take more pupils
    • improve the current in-year applications scheme so fewer children face delays in finding a new school. (In-year applications happen when a child moves to a new area during the academic year)
    • give priority to children of school staff when a school is over-subscribed, if the school wishes, making it easier for schools to recruit teachers and other staff
    • strengthen the military covenant by allowing children of armed forces personnel to be admitted to infant classes even if it takes the class over the 30-pupil limit
    • allow twins and other multiple-birth children to be admitted to infant classes even if it takes the class over the 30-child limit
    • ban local authorities from using area-wide “lotteries”
    • reduce bureaucracy by requiring admissions authorities to consult on admissions arrangements every seven years (rather than every three years) if no changes are proposed. (They would still need to consult when they wanted to change their admissions arrangements).

    The consultation also asks whether Academies and Free Schools should be able to prioritise children receiving the pupil premium, as announced in the Schools White Paper last year.

    A raft of unnecessary prescription will also be removed from the draft Appeals Code to make the process cheaper and less burdensome. The consultation suggests:

    • Parents will have at least 30 days to lodge an appeal against primary or secondary school decisions. The current 10-day limit forces parents to appeal quickly. In the last school year for which figures are available (2008/09), more than a quarter of all appeals lodged (24,550 out of 88,270) were not taken forward, wasting time and money.
    • The rule that currently bans appeals from being heard on school premises will be overturned. At the moment admissions authorities have to make costly, taxpayer-funded bookings of hotels or conference rooms.
    • The regulation for admission authorities to advertise for lay appeal members every three years will be cut.
    • The new admissions process will be more open than before. Currently only a very restricted list of people can object to admissions arrangements they believe are unfair. In future anyone will be able to object. The draft code is also clear that local authorities will retain the power to refer any admissions arrangements they believe are not complying with the code to the Schools Adjudicator.

    Education Secretary Michael Gove MP said:

    The school system has rationed good schools. Some families can go private or move house. Many families cannot afford to do either. The system must change. Schools should be run by teachers who know the children’s names and they should be more accountable to parents, not politicians. Good schools should be able to grow and we need more of them.

    The Admissions Code has been bureaucratic and unfair. You shouldn’t have to hire a lawyer to navigate the school system. We are trying to simplify it and make it fairer. We want to cut the red tape that has stopped good schools expanding. We want to make various specific changes to help servicemen and teachers. Together with our other reforms, these changes will help give all children the chance of world-class schools.

    Michael Gove today also announced the appointment of Dr Elizabeth Passmore as the new Chief Schools Adjudicator and stressed the importance of her role in the new system.

    Subject to the passage of the Education Bill, the Adjudicator will be able to consider admissions objections about all maintained schools and Academies. If the Adjudicator finds admissions arrangements are unlawful, they must be changed immediately by the admissions authority.

    Michael Gove said:

    I am delighted to announce Dr Elizabeth Passmore as the new Chief Schools Adjudicator. She brings a wealth of experience to this post and will be a strong advocate of ensuring that our school admissions system is fairer, simpler and easier for all to understand. She will also be firm with those schools or local authorities who do not comply with the Code.

    Michael Gove also paid tribute to the current Chief Schools Adjudicator, Dr Ian Craig. He said:

    I would like to place on record my deep appreciation for the rigour and hard work, as well as the professionalism and diligence, that Dr Craig has brought to this post. He has been an outstanding Chief Adjudicator since his appointment in 2009. I know he and Dr Passmore will work well to ensure a smooth handover.

    Dr Craig said:

    It has been a great privilege to act as Chief Schools Adjudicator and to have had the opportunity to bring greater equality and fairness to the schools admissions system. I am grateful for the support that the Secretary of State and his Ministers have shown me since they took up office and know they listened to my advice, as evidenced when they agreed Academy-related objections should be heard by my office, a change now being effected through the Education Bill.

    I am pleased at the publication of a new Code for consultation today. Reducing the complexity and making it easier for parents to understand without removing the safeguards for vulnerable groups is essential to our admissions system. I would like to offer my congratulations to Dr Elizabeth Passmore on her appointment to this crucial role. I know that she will do an excellent job and I will be delighted to offer her any support necessary during the transition until she takes up her post substantively later this year.

    Dr Elizabeth Passmore said:

    It is an honour and a privilege to be appointed to the post of Chief Schools Adjudicator, particularly at such an exciting time in view of the provisions in the Education Bill around extending the remit of the Adjudicators to consider objections to the admission arrangements of Academies and Free Schools. I welcome the consultation on the Codes and hope the greater simplification and transparency of the Codes will make the system easier for schools, local authorities and especially parents to navigate and make a greater reality of choice, but without losing any of the essential safeguards.

    I would like to pay tribute to the outgoing CSA, Dr Ian Craig, for all the good work he has done and for his great commitment to a fairer schools system that meets the needs of all, not just the few.

    Rob McDonough, headteacher at West Bridgford School in Nottinghamshire, said:

    I very much welcome the direction of change. Through greater school autonomy, and the academies programme which will positively impact upon standards, I do believe this will increase the supply of good school places for parents.

    Keith Reed, chief executive of the Twins and Multiple Births Association (TAMBA), said:

    We are very supportive of the work that is being done to make the school admissions system simpler and more family-friendly. In particular, we are delighted that the new Government has taken on board our suggestion to add twins and multiple-birth children to the list of infant class size exceptions. This change should make a massive difference to the families of children of multiple births.

    The consultation starts today and lasts 12 weeks. Given the challenge of simplifying such a complex system and the potential for changes to have unintended consequences, this consultation is particularly important. Following the consultation period, the draft codes will be laid before parliament. The new codes will not affect the next admissions round (for entry in September 2012) but will take effect for the September 2013 intake.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Schools to get more power to manage teachers [May 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : Schools to get more power to manage teachers [May 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 24 May 2011.

    The Department for Education today announced plans for significant reductions in the bureaucracy that controls how schools manage teacher performance and deal with poorly performing teachers.

    The current system for teachers’ performance management is set out in the Education (School Teacher Performance Management) (England) Regulations 2006. These regulations are complex, detailed and prescriptive, telling schools what to do at every turn. The overall system fails to respect the professionalism of headteachers and teachers and makes it harder for schools to manage vital processes, such as how staff are trained and rewarded.

    The existing School Staffing Regulations (2009) require governing bodies to have “capability procedures”. Schools are expected to follow a complex “model capability procedure” for dealing with poorly performing teachers.

    But the performance management arrangements and capability procedures were developed separately and this has created further complexity, overlap and duplication.

    Ministers, therefore, have today published plans to cut this bureaucracy. The proposed changes will make it easier for schools to manage teachers and deal effectively with the small number of poorly performing teachers. They will:

    • introduce simpler performance management regulations, which set a few basic requirements, remove many restrictions (including the so-called “three hour observation rule”), and leave other decisions to schools
    • introduce an optional new model policy for schools that deals with both performance and capability/disciplinary issues
    • allow poorly performing teachers to be removed in about a term, a process that now often takes a year or more
    • clarify that staff illness need not bring disciplinary processes to a halt
    • scrap about 60 pages of unnecessary guidance.

    These proposals are now subject to a 12 week statutory consultation. It is expected that the new arrangements for dealing with underperforming teachers will come into effect from September 2011. Revised regulations for performance management will be published in September 2011 and take effect in 2012.

    Recent research for the Sutton Trust shows that heads and teachers support the aims of these proposals. More than half (57%) of those surveyed in November 2010 agreed or strongly agreed that there was not enough freedom for schools to dismiss poorly performing teachers. Less than a quarter (21%) disagreed or strongly disagreed.

    Michael Gove MP said:

    We have a great generation of headteachers and teachers. We want to help them to do their jobs even better. We want to make it easier for schools to provide teachers with the training and professional development they need to fulfil their potential and to help their pupils to do the same.

    Heads and teachers also want a simpler and faster system to deal with teachers who are struggling. For far too long schools have been trapped in complex red tape. We must deal with this problem in order to protect the interests of children who suffer when struggling teachers are neither helped nor removed. Schools must be given the responsibility to deal with this fairly and quickly.

    Brian Lightman, General Secretary, Association of School and College Leaders said:

    ASCL welcomes this consultation which has the potential to reduce bureaucracy and streamline processes whilst retaining and strengthening important principles of fairness and transparency The vast majority of school staff are extremely hard working and set themselves high professional standards. Appraisal enables staff and school leaders to identify training needs and implement appropriate programmes of continued professional development.

    In the relatively small number of cases where performance is unsatisfactory in spite of the formal and informal support that has been provided, it is essential for the benefit of the students that capability procedures can be implemented swiftly without the current constraints over timescales.

    Russell Hobby, General Secretary of the NAHT, said:

    These proposals will be generally welcomed by school leaders. Headteachers need the ability to move on the relatively few weak teachers present in our schools, and want to be able to do this fairly and without delay, to the benefit of pupils and, ultimately, staff. Both bureaucracy and delays are unfair to all involved.

    Managing performance is an essential part of development for school staff. It ensures identification of training needs to allow staff to grow and also, where areas need attention, enables appropriate support to be provided. If, despite that support, the level of performance is still not satisfactory, then it is essential that this is dealt with quickly and fairly.

    Darran Lee, Executive Principal to the Learning Federation and headteacher at Medlock Valley and Mills Hill Schools said:

    These new proposals provide greater flexibility for school leaders to develop approaches that meet the needs of their school and secure the very best teaching for our children.

    The merging of performance management and capability policies into one will ensure a continuum of support and challenge, removing duplication and overlap in procedures. This will enable leaders to take action more quickly when teaching is below expectations.

    Ivan Ould, Chair of the National Employers’ Organisation for School Teachers, said:

    We welcome the Secretary of State’s proposal to simplify the performance management arrangements for teachers. In particular we welcome the introduction of a clearer relationship between performance management and capability procedures in order to address cases, where teachers are falling below the standards which are expected of them as part of the employment contract, in a more appropriate and timely manner.

  • PRESS RELEASE : New plans allow schools to employ overseas teachers more easily [May 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : New plans allow schools to employ overseas teachers more easily [May 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 23 May 2011.

    Despite having undertaken training to achieve equivalent teacher training qualifications, qualified teachers from America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand still have to undertake further training and assessment before they are deemed ready to teach in schools in this country.

    Michael Gove has today announced that the government intends to make changes so that teachers trained in these countries will be able to teach in our schools automatically. We will consult on how best to achieve this change later in the year. Speaking in Parliament today he said:

    One of the aims of my department is to make sure that the most talented people possible are teaching our children and it is already the case that teachers from the European Economic Area can teach in our schools.

    Today I want to extend that freedom to teachers from the Commonwealth countries such as Canada and New Zealand and Australia and I hope that other Commonwealth countries like South Africa, Jamaica and Singapore can join in due course.

    Research looking at international teaching qualifications shows America, Australia, Canada and New Zealand have teacher training systems that are equivalent to those in the UK. Ministers therefore will be amending the relevant regulations to recognise the qualifications held in these countries. This will allow well-trained teachers from these countries to work in schools as if they held qualified teacher status.

    The school or local authority sponsoring the teacher will have to continue to check the suitability of the teacher including their qualifications and any necessary background checks. In addition they will still have to meet existing immigration criteria set out by the UK Border Agency (UKBA).

    The proposed changes are subject to a statutory consultation and could come into effect from early 2012. Ministers have also commissioned further research to see if the same changes could be applied to teachers from any other countries in future.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Tim Byles, CEO of Partnerships for Schools announces he is leaving the agency [May 2011]

    PRESS RELEASE : Tim Byles, CEO of Partnerships for Schools announces he is leaving the agency [May 2011]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 19 May 2011.

    Tim Byles, CEO of Partnerships for Schools, is to leave his post after nearly 5 years.

    The Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove, would like to thank Tim Byles for his work, especially his contribution to the government’s successful reforms on academies and free schools.

    Michael Gove said:

    I would like to thank Tim Byles for the commitment to public service he has shown over the last 5 years. I would like to wish him the very best in everything he does after his departure from Partnerships for Schools.

    Ruth Thompson, former Director General of Higher Education at the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, has been appointed as interim Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools.