Commenting on news that the government is scrapping several
clauses in the Schools Bill, Geoff Barton, General Secretary of
the Association of School and College Leaders, said:
“We are pleased that the government is scrapping clauses in the
Schools Bill which would have handed unprecedented powers to the
Education Secretary over virtually every aspect of the running of
academies from the length of the school day to the spiritual
development of pupils to the handling of complaints.
“It was a ridiculous attempt to centralise power in Whitehall
over matters which are obviously much better decided by
professional educators who know the needs of their schools and
their pupils.
“This power-grab was rightly called out by members of the House
of Lords from across the political spectrum and we are grateful
for their intervention.
“We note that the government intends to come back with new
proposals as part of its drive for full academisation. We hope
that these proposals will be far more proportionate and sensible.
“The wider picture is the enormous amount of time and energy
which is being spent on these structural adjustments to the
education system and the associated legislation at a time when
many schools and colleges are experiencing a severe shortage of
teachers and rising costs which are putting strained budgets
under even more pressure.
“These are the matters that should really be the focus of the
government’s efforts.”
