Tories slam Labour’s Schools Bill as ‘educational vandalism’

Today [Wednesday 8^th January 2025] the Conservatives are warning that Labour's Schools Bill will make England's schools as bad as Wales, where the average 15-year-old scored lower than pupils in any other UK nation in maths, science and reading, stop failing schools being put under new management, and lead to pay cuts for tens of thousands of teachers.

Labour's Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which comes before Parliament for its 2^nd Reading, represents a significant attack on academies and free schools, the same schools that have helped drive up standards

This Bill introduces provisions that will force academies across the country to cut pay and conditions downwards onto the national pay scale for teachers. 

At least 533 academy schools are known to exceed the national scale or offer other improved conditions.

New analysis by the Conservatives finds that there are over 20,000 teachers working in academies that the exceed national pay scale. These benefits and renumeration above the national standard will now be put at risk by the new law when it comes into effect in 2026.

This pay cut for hardworking teachers, whose work has driven up educational standards in this country and left our children as the best readers and mathematicians in the western world, is a particular slap in the face after Labour handed inflation busting pay rises of £10,000 to train drivers already earning £60,000 – with no strings attached.

This is latest revelation about the damage Labour's plans will do to our education system is also just one part of a wider attack on academies and free schools by this Labour government who are set to abolish academies in all but name.   

Laura Trott MP, Shadow Education Secretary, said:

“Labour are set on tearing up everything that has driven up school standards: removing school freedoms over pay, curriculum, and staffing, and reducing accountability for failing schools.

 
“This is educational vandalism, plain and simple – and the Conservatives will oppose it every step of the way.”

Neil O'Brien MP, Shadow Education Minister, said:

“Labour's Schools Bill is a piece of educational vandalism which will lead to pay cuts for good teachers, ends the vital requirement to turn failing schools over to new management, and will enable local authorities to share out pupils from good schools to prop up poor ones.

“We can already see from Wales, where Labour have already implemented this agenda, that the results have been catastrophic, with Welsh school results slumping even as schools in England have climbed the international league tables."

ENDS

Notes to Editors 
   

• Welsh 15-year-old pupils scored lower than pupils in all other UK nations in maths, science and reading. (BBC News, 17 July 2024, link)

• Labour's Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill will force academies to converge with the same ‘core and pay conditions' as other schools, forcing academies to effectively cut the salaries of hard-working teachers. Clauses 45 and 46 of the Bill would require all schools to offer the same ‘core pay and conditions', meaning that academies that currently utilise their freedom to offer pay above national pay scales will be forced to cut the salaries of hard-working staff to converge them down onto the national pay scale (UK Parliament, Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, 17 December 2024, link; Tes Magazine, 17 December 2024, link). 

• Freedom of Information requests by the Times Education Supplement (TES) found at least 533 academy schools vary either substantially or somewhat from national pay scales. TES asked all trusts across the country if they pay in line with national pay scales set out by the government, or deviate from that standard. Within this, 12 trusts, running 271 academies across the country, said they exceed the pay scales, and a further 21 trusts, running 262 academies, differentiate on small points of the national deal or provide staff with additional benefits (Tes Magazine, 17 December 2024,link). 

• Our analysis shows that just those academy schools already known to be using pay freedoms employ over 20,000 teachers, who stand to have their pay cut because of Labour.  Of the 533 academies that TES identified as paying above the national scale, we matched 91 per cent of those schools with the number of teachers they employ, reaching a total of 18,989 teachers who will face a pay cut. When scaling this up to cover the total 533 academies that TES concluded exceed the national scale, we expect there to be at least 20,000 teachers that will have their pay effectively cut as a result of this legislation (Tes Magazine, 17 December 2024, link; CRD Analysis, 7 January 2024, detail available upon request).

• But the total number of teachers hit may be significantly higher. If the trusts that did not respond to the TES FOI request had a similar proportion using pay freedoms to boost teacher pay & conditions, there are likely to be thousands more teachers currently benefiting from pay freedoms that Labour will harm (Tes Magazine, 17 December 2024, link; CRD Analysis, 7 January 2024, available upon request).

• Catherine McKinnell refused to confirm that teachers working in academy trusts will not have their salaries cut.  When asked if Catherine McKinnell could guarantee that no teacher would have their pay cut as a result of the change, she refused to confirm this would be the case, commenting ‘No teacher should suffer detriment as a result of the changes, because we really want to retain good practice' (Tes Magazine, 17 December 2024, link). 

• Sir Jon Coles, CEO of United Learning, warned of the damage this measure will do. Coles said that ‘Attracting and keeping the best people has been critical to the improvement of our schools – so paying more and offering more flexibility is not only right for us and right for you but most importantly it is right for children' and that staff had already ‘understandably expressed concern' about their pay being cut (Schools Week, 19 December 2024, link)

Many of the best school trusts use academy freedoms to offer significantly more than the national rate:

• The largest school trust in the country, United Learning, uses the freedoms to pay their teachers 5.6 per cent above the figures set out in national pay and conditions by the government. They are keen to retain good teachers in their 90 schools, and their scale helps them make the back office savings they use to pay for it (TES, 7 June 2024, link).

• Dixons Academies Trust is using their freedoms to give teachers a nine-day fortnight. The Dixon Academies Trust said, ‘As a trust, we have always tried to skew our budget towards teaching staff by reducing other costs, which has allowed for more PPA' (Planning, Preparation and Assessment time) – which is why they are working towards a nine-day fortnight for teachers, without impacting students' contact time (Dixon Academies Trust, Article, 18 January 2024, link).

Labour are abolishing the academy conversion grant and the Trust Capacity Fund:

• Labour are abolishing the academy conversion grant from 1 January 2025 and the Trust Capacity Fund, including the most recent round of funding. In response to a Written Parliamentary Question, Education Minister Catherine McKinnell said, ‘The department keeps all of its programmes under review to ensure funding is targeted where it is needed most and on 1 November, we announced that we would be ending the academy conversion grant from 1 January 2025. At the same time, the department also informed trusts that had submitted grant applications for the Trust Capacity Fund, including the Trust Establishment and Growth Fund, that the most recent Window 4 funding round had been cancelled and that there were no plans for future rounds' (UK Parliament, 18 November 2024, UIN 14807, link).   

• The application process for Window 4 of the Trust Capacity Fund was intended to remain open until 25 June 2024. The Trust Capacity Fund, a competitive grant fund, was launched in September 2019 to help form and grow high quality trusts, with a particular focus on supporting high quality trusts, and high quality schools forming trusts, to take on underperforming schools in education investment areas. The most recent round of the fund was split into five windows with Window 4 of the Trust Capacity Fund meant to remain open until 25 June 2024 (DfE, Information for Applicants, March 2024, link; DfE, Guidance, 6 September 2019, link).   

• The Confederation of School Trusts criticised the Government for abolishing the academy conversion grant, commenting ‘it is a short-sighted decision that will weaken the school system'. Leora Cruddas, the CST's Chief Executive, commented, ‘Ending this grant will leave, in particular, smaller primary schools very vulnerable and without the financial and educational sustainability that comes from being part of a trust. It is a short-sighted decision that will weaken the school system' (Schools Week, 1 November 2024, link).  

Labour have paused the delivery of 44 free schools, risking lower school standards of school standards: 

• The Government are pausing the delivery of 44 free schools. PHILLIPSON: ‘There are 44 centrally delivered, mainstream projects where we will engage with local authorities and trusts to review whether the school should open. More details on schools in scope of the review will be provided in due course' (Hansard, 22 October 2024, Vol.755, link).     

New data shows that academies and free schools are performing ‘well above average':   

• 29 per cent of free schools and 20 per cent of academies are performing ‘well above average', compared to just nine per cent of community schools. New data published by the Department for Education shows that 29 per cent of free schools and 20 per cent of academies are performing ‘well above average', in comparison to just nine per cent of community schools (Gov.UK, Key Stage 4 Performance: 2023-24, 5 December 2024, link).     

The Conservatives delivered over 700 free schools and 10,000 academies, providing the opportunities and high standards young people need to succeed: 

• The Conservatives delivered over 700 free schools, with more in the pipeline, bringing high standards, more choice for parents and strong links to industry.  Thanks to the Conservatives, there are over 700 free schools today, including some in the most disadvantaged areas where education outcomes are weakest, providing more opportunities for local young people (The Conservative and Unionist Party, Manifesto 2024, 11 June 2024, link; DfE, Press Release, 22 August 2023, link).    

• Half of all state-funded schools are now high-quality multi-academy trusts that have been key to driving up education standards for pupils, teachers, and leaders. In May 2024, there were 10,839 academies, compared to just 203 in 2010 – with the Conservatives' academies programme being a key driver of standards in schools, meaning every child receives a better education (Hansard, 1 May 2024, Vol.749, link). 

The Conservatives drove up school standards across the country, ensuring every child has the opportunity of a world-class education:  

• Drove up school standards across the country with 90 per cent of schools now rated good or outstanding, delivering a world-class education system to our students. Since 2010, during our time in office, we drove up school standards across the country meaning 90 per cent of schools are now rated good or outstanding, up from 68 per cent under the last Labour government (Ofsted, Official Statistics, 14 March 2024, link).

• Made England one of the top performing countries for education in the western world. It was under a Conservative government that children in England were named ‘Best in the West' for reading. More recently, children in England were ranked the best at maths in the Western World in the TIMSS 2023 study and moved into the top five in global rankings for science (DfE, Press Release, 5 December 2023, link; The Independent, 4 December 2024, link; Twitter, Laura Trott, 4 December 2024, link).