Every day seems to bring forward new statistics which illustrate the urgent need for radical education reform. Take this from Camilla Cavendish’s column:
The state of state education in this country is a national scandal. Its failings are destroying both social mobility in Britain and this country’s chances of competing economically on the world stage.“150,000 pupils start secondary school innumerate every year”
Then, there’s this from today’s Times:
Gove’s supply-side reforms will solve this problem by, to borrow the name of the think tank pamphlet that has inspired many of the proposals, creating more good school places.“Half of children moving to secondary school failed to get into the one they wanted in some areas, according to official figures … One in eight of families in some areas were turned down by all of their selected schools.”
It is hard to overstate how much is riding on the Tory school reform agenda. Leaving aside the politics, it is not that hyperbolic to say that on it rests the chances of Britain being a dynamic society with an economic growth rate that can support an improving standard of living, quality public services and Britain’s global role.
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