The presentation of the first Schools White Paper in six years in Parliament should have been an opportunity for government to really demonstrate the importance placed on the education of our young people.
Yet when the Secretary of State stood up last week to set out his roadmap of reforms, the chamber was half empty. Over the pandemic, many rightly voiced the importance of keeping schools open as long as possible or prioritising their reopening at the end of lockdowns as we all understood that the future is shaped in our classrooms.
But where were these parliamentarians now, given this prime opportunity to critique the educational priorities outlined in the White Paper?
Nadhim Zahawi comes to his role as Education Secretary with a strong history of delivery, most notably as the Minister for Covid Vaccine Deployment. Expectations for this White Paper were high, his vision to “make our schools the very best in the world” with measurable aims and objectives.
The paper includes pledges to rewrite guidance for behaviour in schools, an outline of the importance of school communication with parents and a delineation of the roles within the school system to ensure clarity and increase trust.
He has also focused on improving early years provision through a range of initiatives, including a new national qualification for early years leadership, a larger bank of high-quality free curriculum resources for teachers and increasing the length of the school week to address national discrepancies.
The White Paper rightfully places a greater importance on primary school education but demonstrates a lack of understanding as to the impact of the pandemic more broadly. Particularly absent has been a concrete plan to address the increasing number of young people requiring mental health and wellbeing support.
Ofsted’s spring research paper highlighted this week that pupils are “still experiencing poorer well-being”. We have seen this reflected through consistently high attendance at wellbeing sessions for parents run by PaJeS.
Much as the White Paper wishes to gloss over the pandemic as a blip of two years, it cannot be ignored. Refusing to engage meaningfully with the impact of Covid demonstrates a lack of understanding about how to move forward educationally in practical terms.
Robert Halfon, chair of the education select committee, said the paper provides “a washing line for all the clothes pegs of different educational initiatives”. But if these initiatives lack real financial investment and an understanding of the true climate in our schools, they are unlikely to meet with real success.
The title of the White Paper references the importance of “great teachers” and lays out funding opportunities for professional development of aspiring leaders. However, more attention needs to be given to how we support existing leaders. Over 30 per cent of headteachers leave within three years of taking up their position.
Moving schools into multi-academy trusts is not the panacea the White Paper proposes. Not only will it take time for all schools to move into a strong MAT, but the devolution of responsibility off the shoulders of individual headteachers joining the trusts will also be a process.
Fundamentally, the intention of the White Paper to provide “an excellent teacher for each child” is laudable. However, perhaps at least as important is that our elected representatives recognise the very real challenges facing our schools and deliver sufficient investment to support school leaders.
Raisel Freedman is director of public affairs for PaJeS
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