Keep local schools locally accountable

11.13.28am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 1st Feb 2006

Cllr David Ward and two of the children likely to be effected by the Government's proposals

Cllr David Ward, formerly Portfolio Holder for Education, is putting a motion to Bradford Council highly critical of the Government's White Paper on education.

He said,

" The government has all the right rhetoric about improving standards in schools for all children, getting parents more involved and giving them choice. Then it comes up with these plans which will probably do the exact opposite.

An admissions "free for all" means that school will choose the pupils they want and parents risk not getting the school places they wanted for their children. Parental choice is a myth and this will continue. Schools will be encouraged to "poach" pupils from each other and this will only work in the interests of some schools, not in the interests of all young people

There will be an even greater centralisation of power in the hands of unelected Whitehall bureaucrats and local councils will be powerless to take strategic decisions in the interests of all children. Local schools should be funded locally, with decisions by elected bodies accountable to local people, rather than by funding formulas dictated by central government .

It is time to stop tinkering with structures and concentrate on focusing directly on improving and supporting teaching. Over half of young people in Bradford schools do not get five good GCSEs. The key to improvement is in better teaching not and more resources not unproven structures."