Education in Brent and Coalition Policies

The plethora of policy announcements on education from the Coalition in the last few days is confusing to say the least. With right-wing Tory, Michael Gove and left-wing Liberal Democrat Sarah Teather (MP for Brent Central) trying to work together despite clear ideological differences, we are likely to see more confusion and possible conflict in the future. At present Tory cuts and privatisation sit alongside the Lib Dem 'pupil premium' which aims to help youngsters from disadvantaged backgrounds.

BUILDING WORK THREATENED

Alperton High School, Cardinal Hinsley High School, Copland Community School and Queen's Park Community School are all likely to lose Building Schools for the Future Funding and there may also be a question mark over completion of work at the Crest Academies (previously the John Kelly schools). An extension into the primary phase of Capital City Academy may be reviewed. In addition several primary schools ear-marked for a rebuild or expansion may see their schemes put on the back burner.

 MORE ACADEMIES IMPACT ON FUNDING

The Coalition has announced that schools deemed 'outstanding' by Ofsted will be eligible to convert to academies gaining 10-12 percent additional funding at the expense of other schools, as well as more control over teachers' pay and conditions and an ability to divert from the National Curriculum. As if this is not incentive enough, all outstanding schools will be exempted from Ofsted inspections. 'Outstanding' schools in Brent include St Joseph's Infants, Wembley; Roe Green Infants, Kingsbury; Oakington Manor Primary, Wembley; and Convent of Jesus and Mary, JFS and Wembley High in the secondary sector.

When a similar move took place some years ago, with schools able to get grant maintained status with additional freedoms, it impacted on schools that maintained their community school status. At the time the then Willesden High School (now City Academy) and Wembley High School experienced difficulties caused by receiving a disproportionate number of special needs pupils and new arrivals to the country. Rather than reduce inequality such policies tend to increase it. Although outstanding schools can get academy status automatically, all schools will be encouraged to apply for it. As each academy will take additional funds from the main funding pool, non-academy schools will have reduced funding for staffing and resources. The academies will also have the freedom to offer additional pay incentives and thus cream off teaching staff from other schools. Heads and governing bodies will come under pressure to seek academy status to improve things for 'our children'.

The need to find a sponsor has now been removed and the policy turned on its head. Instead of offering a 'last chance' to schools deemed to be failing, academy status is now a reward for satisfying Ofsted. For the left the argument that academies are a form of privatisation has to be refined and attention shifted to democratic accountability. The so called 'Free Schools' however may be the new vehicle for introducing private profit into the state education system.

'FREE' SCHOOLS - EXPENSIVE FOR THE REST OF US

The Conservative policy on 'free schools', enabling parents, teacher groups and other associations to set up their own schools, is clearly one that will need additional funding and take funds away from mainstream schools and programmes such as Building Schools for the Future. The Coalition have said that existing buildings could be taken over and converted raising questions about the maintenance of teaching and play space standards as well as the accessibility rights of disabled students. If funds come from the government, that will reduce money available to other schools. At a time of public funding cuts this may well mean that the government will seek investment from the private sector - who will of course demand a decent rate of return.

SHIFTING CUTS ON TO LEAS

When the possibility of central funding of schools was mooted a few years ago, the idea encountered opposition from the government. The current mixture of funding means that blame for cuts and under-funding can be shifted from central government to local authorities. Anti-cuts campaigners demonstrate at the local Town Hall rather than the Department for Education. Although the government has said it will 'protect' funding to schools, it will cut funding to local authorities. Demands from services such as social services, social care etc, will mean that some money will have to be diverted by the local authorities.  In addition centrally funded initiatives such as those for extended schools, 1:1 tuition for children falling behind and music tuition are also going to be cut. A Labour controlled Brent Council will have to implement Tory-Lib Dem cuts.

SO WILL THE PUPIL PREMIUM MAKE UP FOR ALL THIS?

This is the question Sarah Teather will have to ask herself. The Coalition Agreement states that the government will introduce 'a significant premium for disadvantaged pupils from outside the schoolos budget by reductions in spending elsewhere'. 'Elsewhere' could be other aspects of education spending. However no figures yet exist, despite the Lib Dem's promise of £2.5 billion, and no starting date has been fixed.

FREEDOM FOR PUPILS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS AND DISABILITIES?

The Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education and the Alliance for Inclusive Education have both attacked plans to water down inclusion. Simone Aspis, of the AIE, and a Brent Green party candidate at the recent local elections told the Times Educational Supplement, "It's an absolute disgrace that a coalitiion that talks  about promoting fairness and equality wants to remove disabled children's rights to access mainstream schooling. This policy will turn the clocks back by 30 years, where disabled children will grow up living segregated lives."

Council Election Results at a Glance

Click to enlarge (source Brent Council)

Cameron: London Speaks

The Impact of Cuts

The Lib Dems have accepted Conservative policy on public expenditure cuts as part of the coalition deal. This will immediately face the new Labour council with implementing deep cuts.  Lib Dems and Labour during the election pledged to protect schools and 'frontline' services. However, this is misleading. Implementing cuts in management and 'backroom' services always has an impact on frontline services.

Brent Council, under the Lib Dem-Conservative leadership, had already begun the process of making cuts ('effiiciency savings') as part of the restriction on Local Government expenditure. In Children and Families this has involved freezing vacancies, seeking redundancies and cutting ('harmonising') allowances. The latter involves ending the payment of Inner London Allowances to Brent staff and paying the lower Outer London Allowance instead.

The services provided by Children and Families at Chesterfield House include teacher recruitment, CRB checks for new staff, administering the supply teacher pool, managing special educational needs processes and provision, and asset management.  Cuts will mean that these services will become less efficient, less responsive and more liable to fail when under pressure.  The repercussions for something like CRB checks are obvious.

When such services deteriorate headteachers are likely to be attracted to private contractors. For example, the supply teacher pool administered by Brent Council is one of the few local authority pools remaining. Quality and child protection checks are effective, the staff sensitive to the needs of particular schools, and teachers properly paid with good conditions of service. If this service fails, headteachers will turn to private teacher supply agencies which are of variable quality and cream off a generous fee, costing schools more but paying their staff far less.

In this way public sector cuts lead to the growth of privatisation and a reduction in teachers' conditions of service. Facing an era of cuts headteachers will also be tempted to use private supply staff for filling long-term vacancies. Agency staff can be dispensed with at short notice and will not have recourse to trade union representation or contractural protection ('flexible labour force').

Reduced and less efficient support services coupled with the casualisation of labour will leave the system vulnerable. It will of course be the staff involved who will be personally blamed for any failures, rather than the cuts which created the conditions for failure.

News from Cochamba - Public Meeting

Conservatives and Lib Dems slashed, BNP routed

A swathe of Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors lost their seats in the Council election.  The Liberal Democrats lost 10 seats and now have 17 councillors. Conservatives lost 9 seats and have only six councillors left, including Harsh Patel their General Election candidate in Brent North. Their seats are all in the north of the borough: Kenton, Northwick Park and Preston.

Labour with 21 gains now have 40 councillors and are firmly in the driving seat. There are no Democratic Conservative councillors following their last minute withdrawal. Atiq Malik, a former Democratic Conservative councillor, did not stand as a councillor as he was standing as an Independent parliamentary candidate in Brent North.

The council election also saw the defeat of Bertha Joseph, who having been both a Labour and a Conservative councillor, stood as an Independent in Kensal Green. She gained 450 votes, about 3% of the ward total.

The BNP candidate in Fryent had 163 votes, 169 behind the leading Green candidate, and about 1% of the total. The Jewish Chronicle had earlier reported:

A Jewish man who claims to have “no interest” in politics is standing as the BNP candidate in a local election. Richard Blackmore, from Kensal Rise, is standing for the Fryent ward in Brent, the first BNP candidate for the borough in 30 years.

Mr Blackmore, who is retired but would not state his age, described himself as of “Jewish extraction”.
His late mother’s maiden name was Gluckstein. He said he joined the BNP because he was “disgusted” with New Labour and the BNP was an “alternative”. 

He said: “I’m not that interested in politics. They asked me to stand. I couldn’t care less. It’s not a serious attempt. Lots of people go into the polling booth and don’t know what they are doing — and this is the same.” 

He said he did not realise that BNP members had denied the Holocaust in the past and said that he had “nothing whatsoever against Jewish tribes”.

Brent and Harrow Unite Against Fascism held a stall in Kingsbury Road and leafleted local streets opposing the BNP. I made Fryent a priority in my Brent North campaign after Barnhill ward where I also stood as a council candidate..  However confused the candidate, and dismissive of his supporters, it was important that the BNP be opposed. Let's have at least another 30 years without fascists on our ballot forms.

Caroline Lucas on Her Election Success

VIDEO

"Don't be Seduced by the Trappings of Power" Lucas to Clegg

Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion and leader of the Green Party has issued the following statement on the discussions taking place this weekend:

These are uncharted waters for all politicians. But this only makes it more important that Nick Clegg makes his decisions based on the clear steer given to him by voters.

In this election the British people have brought in a House of Commons in which a majority of MPs are from parties which support reform. A clear majority of people in the United Kingdom voted for reform of our political system. Therefore any arrangement between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives must include genuine and comprehensive reform of the political system. A commission, inquiry, or any other delaying tactic will not be acceptable. There should be a referendum before the end of the year which includes options for a genuinely proportional system not the self-serving system of AV which is even less proportional. The people should be asked what voting system they would prefer. That is proper democracy.

The first past the post system has created a situation where people cannot vote positively for the candidate or party whose policies they most agree with. Instead, they are forced to vote in fear, working out how to vote to keep out the party furthest away from them in policy and values. This leaves us a grotesque democratic deficit and a poor basis on which to govern.

The Liberal Democrats must not be seduced by the trappings of power. The people have voted for reform: Nick Clegg must not betray them.