Conservative Government Policies From 2010

What did the Conservative-led coalition government (2010-2015) and the Conservative government from 2015 accelerate?

The move away from an education system based largely on comprehensive schools run by local authorities. Its policies have been strongly influenced by neoliberal/New Right ideas about reducing the role of the state in the provision of education through marketisation and privatisation.

What did Dave Cameron (Prime Minister, 2010-15) state?

That the aim of the Coalition education policy was to encourage ‘excellence, competition and innovation‘ by freeing schools from the ‘dead hand of the state‘, through policies such as academies and free schools. Furthermore, cuts were made to the education budget, as part of the government’s general policy of reducing state spending.

What were all schools encouraged to do from 2010?

To leave local authority control and become academies. Funding was taken from local authority budgets and given directly to academies by central government, and academies were given control over curriculum. By 2017, over 68% of all secondary schools had converted to academy status.

Whereas Labour’s original city academies targeted disadvantaged schools and areas, what did the Coalition government do?

Removed the focus on reducing inequality by allowing any school to become an academy.

Although funded directly by the state, who are free schools run by?

Parents, teachers, faith organisations or businesses rather than the local authority.

What do supporters of free schools claim?

That they improve educational standards by taking control away from the state and giving power to parents. Free schools, it is claimed, give parents and teachers the opportunity to create a new school if they are unhappy with the state schools in their local area.

What does Allen argue?

That research from Sweden, where 20% of schools are free schools, shows that they only benefit children from highly educated families.

What do other critics claim about free schools?

That free schools are socially divisive and that they lower educational standards - Sweden’s international educational ranking has fallen since their introduction.

What have Charter schools in the USA (similar to free schools) been criticised for?

Appearing to raise standards but only doing so by strict pupil selection and exclusion policies.

In England, what does evidence show that free schools take less of?

Free schools take fewer disadvantaged pupils than nearby schools. For example, in 2011, only 6.4% of pupils at Bristol Free School were eligible for free school meals, compared with 22.5% of pupils across the city as a whole.

What does Ball argue?

That promoting academies and free schools has led to both increased fragmentation and increased centralisation over educational provision in England.

Fragmentation - the comprehensive system is being replaced by a patchwork of diverse provision, much of it involving private providers, that leads to greater inequality in opportunities.

Centralisation of control - central government alone has the power to allow free schools to be set up. These schools are funded directly by central government. Their rapid growth has greatly reduced the role of elected local authorities in education.

While the conservative-led coalition’s marketisation policies are said to have increased inequality, they else did they introduce?

Policies aimed at reducing it, including:

• Free school meals for all children in reception, year one and two.

• The pupil premium, money that schools recieve for each pupil from a disadvantaged background.

What did Ofstead find?

That in many cases, the pupil premium is not spent on those it is supposed to help. Only one in ten head teachers said that it had significantly changed how they supported pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Furthermore, what else happened as part of the Conservative governments ‘austerity’ programme?

Spending on many areas of education has been cut: spending on school buildings was cut by 60%, many Sure Start centres were closed, the EMA was abolished and university fees tripled to £9,000 a year.

What do critics argue that cutting Sure Start and the EMA had reduced?

Opportunities for working-class pupils. Similarly, increasing university fees may discourage them from entering higher education.