Stephen Morgan has been shadow schools minister since December 2021.

He became MP for his home constituency, Portsmouth South, in 2017 - overturning a big Conservative majority - and retained the seat in 2019.

He speaks to Tes about the influence of his grandfather on his education and why he thinks that his job is a “dream” role.

1. Who was your most memorable teacher and why?

There are so many great teachers who utterly transform a child’s chances in life.

One that springs to mind is a teacher at my primary school called Mrs Jackson, who just gave me the sort of confidence and resilience that young people need to succeed. A lovely story to share with you is that, after the 2017 General Election, I happened to bump into her on the street. She said she had to run and get something and ran into her house. She came back with a piece of work - a book - I’d done in Year 6, so 25 years ago. She said it was one of the best pieces of work she had ever seen and had kept it to show others. It was just a really moving moment.

Then I also think a secondary teacher called Mr Burnell, who was just a really inspiring teacher. He was the sort of man that would capture the mood of the class and essentially command so much respect. He would take us out on visits to the Brecon Beacons and make geography, which was my favourite subject, very interesting.

2. What were the best and worst things about your time at school?

The best thing was definitely the opportunities the school gave me. I went to my local state school, it was just around the corner from my parents’ house and they served as governors. Going to a good local school where you can get so many opportunities to learn, thrive and develop is really important.

The worst thing was the buildings. I went to school in the 80s and 90s and you could see the paint chipping off the classrooms, the rooms needed fixing. There is lots to do but that would be a priority for the next Labour government - to make sure we have got learning environments fit for the future.

3. Why do you work in education?

I believe that wherever you are from, whatever your background, you should have the best chance in life to succeed, so I think this is the dream brief. 

As I said, I had a really good schooling going to my local state school and I want to make sure every young person has that opportunity as well. We need a government that puts children at the centre of our vision for a prosperous Britain. That’s why it’s a real privilege to be working alongside other Labour colleagues to make sure that our young people get the best chance in life.

4. What are you proudest of in your career and what do you regret?

I’m really proud of winning the seat of Portsmouth South for Labour for the first time ever in 2017, against the odds, and then tripling my majority two years later. So I think that’s probably a key achievement, as well as having the schools brief given to me by Keir Starmer [Labour leader], of course. To be able to talk about an issue I’m passionate about, and that Labour is passionate about, is a real privilege.

In terms of regret, at the moment it is that I wake up each day and decide what I’m going to say in opposition. I want to be waking up and changing our country for the better. So my regret is that I am not able to do as much as I would like to. That’s why I have a relentless focus on returning a Labour government at the next election.

5. If you could choose your perfect staffroom, who would be in it?

It’s got to be the shadow education team, has it not!?

But I would throw in some of Labour’s past, and people who have transformed education in government. People like Lord Blunkett or Estelle Morris. Learning from their wisdom and expertise to shape our country’s future and the future of our schools would be a helpful thing in our staffroom.

For Lord Blunkett, it’d be his insight on citizenship, for example, and the work he has done on skills as well.

6. What do you think are the best and worst aspects of our schools system?

The best aspect of the schools system is the people who work in our schools. We often don’t talk about our support staff, the caretakers, the cleaners. I think these people, along with teachers and school leaders, have played a big part during the pandemic, keeping children in school and helping them thrive. So I think the best part of our education system is definitely the contribution that the staff make.

The worst part is the chaotic way that schools have been handled during the pandemic, with late notice information, excessive U-turns, and excessive amounts of guidance. I think that has really sapped the passion out of the profession and that is something I’ve talked to teachers up and down the country about. This government has treated schools and children as an afterthought.

7. Your own teachers aside, who in education has influenced you the most?

Good education obviously doesn’t stop at the school gates, your family educates you, too, of course, and my family absolutely inspired and influenced me - particularly my grandfather. He taught me the importance of public service, the importance of looking out for and supporting other people, and the importance of civic duty, essentially.

He was a D-Day veteran, he left on his 17th birthday for Operation Overlord, landing on the Normandy beaches. Towards the end of his life, he didn’t get the social care support he needed. I think that people that pay their taxes and have served our country deserve the very best in life, and he sadly did not. That was actually one of the reasons that I went into politics, to fight for people like him.

So overall, my grandparents gave a lot to our community and influenced me at a young age.

8. If you became education secretary tomorrow, what would you change?

If Bridget [Phillipson, shadow education secretary] and I were walking into the department tomorrow, the priority would be a really ambitious recovery plan delivered for our nation and schools, where we are tackling the issues of lost learning that children have faced over the last two and a half years.

We would be investing in mental health support for young people, investing in breakfast and after-school clubs and small group tutoring, because I am really conscious that disadvantaged children missed out on so much in the last two years. We want to get them back on track and succeeding again.

Our plan is so ambitious and the government has just not matched that ambition. We will see so much opportunity taken away from young people as a result of the pandemic.

9. What will our schools be like in 30 years?

Hopefully, we will be several terms into a Labour government! But in all seriousness, if that was the case, we’d have committed to making sure there was a careers adviser in every school, so that children were being prepared for work and ready for life, and then we’d have a National Excellence Programme, which supports teachers and school leaders to do their job effectively.

In terms of technology, I think we’ve learned a lot from the pandemic in terms of the use of technology, and I think we should absolutely find ways to utilise that more in the future, too.

10. What one person do you think has made the most difference to our schools over the past year?

I pride myself on trying to visit a school every week up and down the country, I’ve visited every school in my constituency and I think it has to be the teaching profession and school staff overall that have gone above and beyond during the pandemic to keep going and keep young people learning in the classroom. So I think that would be my overall answer.

I can’t pinpoint one in particular because I think the whole profession deserves recognition, support and praise.