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Department for Children, Schools and Families - building on achievement, meeting new challenges

DEPARTMENT FOR CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES News Release (2007/0126) issued by The Government News Network on 10 July 2007

A major review of maths teaching in primary schools, personalising the education of every child, and a renewed focus on pupil behaviour will underpin a relentless drive on school standards as Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families Ed Balls today unveiled his vision for his new Department.

A review of primary and early years mathematics teaching will be led by Sir Peter Williams, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Mathematics Education (ACME). The review will seek to define the most effective methods of teaching and learning maths to develop pupils' deeper understanding - to build on the 83,000 more 11 year olds who now achieve the expected level in numeracy for their age since 1997. The review will also help with the design of Every Child Counts, a new intervention programme for young children who are struggling with numeracy.

A National Council for Educational Excellence (NCEE) chaired by the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State will start work later this month to help drive forward the Government's long term aspirations for children and young people's education.

Drawing its membership from leaders in business, the university and voluntary sectors, alongside school leaders, the Council will act as advocates and champions to transform expectations for the education system and advise the Government on measures to achieve world-class education. Members include Sir Terry Leahy, CEO of Tesco, Sir John Rose CE of Rolls Royce, and Richard Lambert, Director General at the CBI.

Ed Balls also announced that the Academy programme would be accelerated with universities spearheading the next wave. Universities, high performing colleges and schools will now be exempt from the requirement to provide £2 million sponsorship, as the programme expands to deliver 400.

He also outlined plans to bring together all aspects of policy affecting children and young people, consulting experts, professionals and children and parents to draw up a new Children's Plan to set the direction for the department for the next ten years to ensure that every child has the opportunities and support they need to be happy and successful.

In a statement to the House of Commons, Ed Balls said:

"Our mission is to ensure that every child has the chance to make the most of their talents and fulfil their potential. We can only bring genuine opportunity for every child if every child gets the best possible start in life and all the support they need to be happy, healthy and successful.

"We start from a track record of achievement. There are now over 35,000 more teachers than in 1997; there are 1106 new schools and over 1300 Sure Start children's centres; there are now 95,000 more 11 year olds achieving well in literacy and 83,000 in numeracy; and whereas only 45% of 15 year olds achieved five or more good GCSEs in1997, over 58% did so in 2006.

"Through a relentless focus on raising standards in the classroom, recruiting and backing excellent teachers, and bringing together responsibility for schools and children and families, we will make sure that every child can make the most of their talents and potential to be successful in life."

Other key measures announced today include:

* £150 million Assessment for Learning training over the next three years to help teachers better track their pupils' progress and personalise their learning to stretch gifted children and help underachieving children catch-up; teachers will also be given an extra inset day to help prepare for the new curriculum;

* more rigorous inspection of pupil behaviour with Ofsted to issue strong new guidance to inspectors which will be clear that behaviour by pupils that has a negative impact on learning is unacceptable. Repeated, low level disruption, as well as more serious isolated incidents of bad behaviour, should not be tolerated. By making this clear, Ofsted will, in effect, raise the bar on what is satisfactory behaviour and what is not. Ofsted's inspectors will focus on behaviour during inspections. And where they find behaviour to be inadequate, they will conduct monitoring visits to make sure it improves. Teachers now have for the first time, new statutory powers to tackle disruptive behaviour, including legal rights to restrain violent pupils and confiscate property;

* expanding the Teach First scheme to attract high performing graduates to work as teachers in challenging inner city schools. From September, it will be extended from London and Manchester to the West Midlands, and from 2009/10, it will also expand to Liverpool, Yorkshire and the Humber. A Teach Next scheme will also be developed to promote mid-career routes into teaching, especially for people from industry and the sciences;

* a £265 million extended schools subsidy over the next three years to ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds benefit from extra out-of-hours tuition and after-school clubs in sport, music and drama. Pilots will commence in 2008, and by year 3, the funding would buy 2 hours per week of group activities in term time, plus additional activities in the holidays.

Ed Balls announced that the Academy programme would be accelerated with universities spearheading the next wave. Universities, high performing colleges and schools will now be exempt from the requirement to provide £2 million sponsorship for an Academy. From now on the test of whether such an organisation can be a potential sponsor will not be its bank balance but whether it can demonstrate the leadership qualities to raise standards.

The Government would like every university to sponsor an Academy, and already a number of universities have expressed interest: Imperial College; University of Manchester; University of Aston; University of Central England; University of Wolverhampton; University College, London; Queen Mary, University of London; University of Kent; and University of the West of England.

Funding agreements will also be signed shortly for the following new Academies: Shirelands Collegiate Academy, Sandwell; John Cabot Academy, Gloucestershire; Brunel Academy, Bristol; George Salter Collegiate Academy, Sandwell; and St Michael and All Angels Church of England Academy, Southwark.

Ed Balls said that Academies have their greatest impact on standards when they are a central part of the local community, and already have a duty to collaborate with all other schools in their area. He reiterated that all Academies replacing local authority schools should proceed with local authority endorsement at the feasibility stage, and that a duty remained to consult local authorities and take their views fully into account at the funding agreement stage. In addition, the Government has now removed the VAT liability on their buildings when their facilities are used by the wider community.

And while freedom to innovate in the curriculum to turn around failing schools matters, in practice all Academies now go with the grain of the National Curriculum and many go beyond it. So from today, all future Academies will follow the National Curriculum programmes of study in core subjects of English, maths, science and ICT.

Starting this month, Mr Balls and his Ministerial team will lead a nationwide consultation with education and children's services experts, as well as children and families themselves to bring together all aspects of policy affecting children and young people into a new Children's Plan. Three working groups will look at education and other services for children and young people - one for 0-7 year olds, one for 8-13 year olds and another for 14-19 year olds.

The working groups will be chaired by members of the NCEE to ensure a fully joined up approach: Jackie Fisher, Principal of Newcastle College; leading London headteacher Sir Alan Steer; and Jo Davidson, Director of Children's Services in Gloucester. The consultation will report in October.

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. A copy of Ed Balls' statement to the House of Commons is posted at http://www.parliament.gov.uk

2. A separate press release issued by the DCSF today details the remit and membership of the National Council for Educational Excellence at http://www.dcsf.gov.uk

3. The £265m for the extended schools subsidy consists of £8.5m, £40m and £217m over the period 2008-11. The funding for 2010-11 only was previously announced by Alan Johnson on 17 May 2007, see http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2007_0084

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