Commenting on Keir Starmer’s pledge to shatter the ‘class
ceiling’ and undertake reform of the education system,
Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary of the National
Education Union, said;
“This announcement sketches a broad and ambitious programme of
reform. If implemented boldly and funded well, it will repair
much of the damage of the last thirteen years.
‘Teachers will be relieved that Labour recognises the multiple
reasons for the teacher recruitment and retention problems.
Labour is right to point to the failure of the current Government
to engage in serious talks about recruitment, retention and the
restoration of teachers’ pay. Labour should commit to a
collective bargaining mechanism that can determine pay and
conditions for all state funded teachers. Addressing the current
exodus from the profession will require a sustained, real-terms
fully funded correction in teachers’ pay and effective action to
reduce sky-high workload.
‘The NEU warmly welcomes the promised review of curriculum and
assessment. The current assessment system narrows the curriculum
and places excessive pressure on staff and pupils alike. Its
problems cannot be dealt with by minor tinkering so this proposed
review will be important. It is heartening that Labour will look
at large-scale change. Progress 8, which Labour proposes to use
for an indefinite period as an accountability metric, is a major
contributor to the curriculum narrowing that Labour recognise as
a problem. It must be broadened in the first instance and
abolished as soon as possible after that.
‘The NEU shares with Labour a belief that without addressing
poverty and disadvantage education reform will not succeed.
Following the examples of the Labour government in Wales and of
, Labour Mayor of London, the
Party should make a commitment to universal free school meals for
all primary school children, as part of a poverty reduction
programme.
‘We welcome the stress on the importance of early years education
and note Labour's recent recognition of the importance of
Maintained Nursery Schools, scandalously neglected by the current
government. Reviewing the curriculum and its assessment are one
important element of responding to the SEND crisis, as the
current accountability and ‘exam factory’ pressures are
incompatible with inclusion and good outcomes for all students.
‘The NEU welcomes the confirmation that Ofsted will be moved away
from the use of single grades. School staff will be looking to
further and more substantial change, that emphasises support for
schools instead of punitive accountability. Regional Improvement
Teams could be effective if they are based on genuine
collaboration between schools and advisers.
‘Schools have lived for many years through a deluge of policies
that have been illogical, draconian and ill-informed. There
is potential that Labour’s policy announcement marks the
beginning of a new period, in which the multiple problems of the
education system are addressed seriously, collaboratively and
with a full understanding that significant change requires
significant investment.
