Clause 5 - School improvement partners
Education and Inspections Bill
3:15 pm
Sarah Teather (Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills, Education & Skills; Brent East, Liberal Democrat)
The amendments are essentially probing amendments designed to test further what the Government mean the role of school improvement partners to be. The Education Act 2005 introduced a lighter touch for inspection. SIPs were established in documentation in 2004, and the Government have said that they intend SIPs to be critical friends. For that reason, we have tabled amendments with slightly different wording to explore exactly what the Government mean by that. We have suggested that SIPs should provide assistance and support rather than advice—a slightly more dictatorial term—to head teachers and the governing body. We want Government to be a little more explicit and to put on record their view on the role of SIPs.
If the relationship is to work well for schools, it will require considerable sensitivity and discretion, so a number of things are important. Do schools have the right to reject any SIP imposed on them? Will there be a discussion between the school and the local education authority? What will be the nature of the SIPs? Will a SIP be one specific person trained through standardised training? There is a danger that it might be an adviser who is on-message rather than someone who is focused on the school’s needs for improvement. It could be someone who is specifically focused on targets or a Government-led predetermined agenda.
Amendments Nos. 61 and 63 would extend the provisions of the clause to all types of schools. If the Minister considers SIPs to be such a great invention, why have they not been extended to all other types of school, particularly to academies? If the Government believe that they are important for driving up standards, it would be the Secretary of State’s role to appoint SIPs for academies.
Amendment No. 62 explores whether informal relationships through federations of schools might be another means of driving up standards, and whether the Government would consider that to be adequate. I should be grateful if the Minister would respond to those questions.