What did we learn from this week’s Labour conference about the future for our schools, colleges and education system?

The answer, in short, is that we got some broad brush strokes but not much detail.

There were commitments to invest in libraries for primary schools, reintroduce maintenance grants for some higher education courses, and create a “youth guarantee” of paid work placements for 18- to 21-year-olds not in education, employment or training.

The prime minister also announced a new target for two-thirds of young people to get higher-level skills through university, further education or an apprenticeship, and said that boosting further education - “so long the Cinderella service” - would be a defining mission for his government.

They are policies designed to create opportunity and growth, and the focus on the importance of colleges - for so long underfunded and unsung - is particularly welcome.

However, there is still much to learn about the future of education. Specifically, we await a schools White Paper, a post-16 White Paper and the final report of the curriculum and assessment review.

Of critical importance will be how all these policy strands are coordinated, and whether they will form a coherent whole rather than a horrible muddle. Clarity and communication will be key.

Year 8 reading tests

Indeed, one significant proposal emerged not at the Labour conference but a couple of days earlier in media reports: the introduction of a national Year 8 reading test.

This will apparently form part of the schools White Paper and is aimed - in a way that has yet to be fully explained - at supporting children’s reading ability and progress.

Everyone in education, I am sure, not only recognises the importance of reading but also already puts a great deal of work into supporting pupils with it.

If there is to be a new national test, we’ll need clarity over the rationale and the practicalities. It must be straightforward to administer, must not create extra curriculum demands and, above all, must not end up being used as another accountability measure.

White Paper delay

But the rumour mill suggests we’ll not actually see the schools White Paper any time soon, and possibly not until the new year.

The reason for this delay is likely to be the sensitivity of reforms being planned for the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) system, including the question of whether to scale back education, health and care plans. This is enormously controversial and could result in a backlash from parents and backbench MPs.

For schools the major change is likely to be a greater focus on SEND support in mainstream education. Pivotal to the success of any reform is the question of resources - how it will be funded and staffed, and how schools will be ensured access to specialist expertise.

Labour knows the importance of getting all of this right, and a delay is no surprise. Frankly, that is better than a rushed job, but it does prolong uncertainty over what the future holds.

Will Btecs be ditched?

And there are other big issues to be resolved. For example, the curriculum and assessment review must make an important call over level 3 qualifications.

Existing government policy is to ditch applied general qualifications, such as Btecs, to clear the way for the rollout of T levels as the “gold standard” vocational/technical qualification.

But there is a real danger that this will leave significant numbers of young people without a suitable pathway and lead to even more ending up not in education, employment or training.

At the very least, T levels must surely be given more time to become established before applied general qualifications are removed as a choice for thousands of young people.

The two-child benefit cap

The omens on another key issue - the two-child benefit limit - are positive, with reports suggesting that it will be scrapped in November’s Budget.

The end of this policy cannot come soon enough. It is a key driver of child poverty and the devastating impact this has on children’s wellbeing and learning.

At Labour’s conference all of these issues and more were discussed in the fringe sessions, but the main stage itself was short on detail.

That is often the way with party conferences. They’re hearts and minds events - showing the direction of travel rather than the itinerary of how to get there.

The next few months, however, will be policy-dense.

The decisions made will define the record of this government on education and the future course of our schools and colleges for years to come. Hold on to your hats.

Pepe Di’Iasio is general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders

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