Laura Trott: Labour risks repeating lowered expectations of the past

“We’re becoming a maths powerhouse,” hailed Ofqual chief regulator Sir Ian Bauckham after this summer’s GCSE results.

That is something we should be hugely proud of and is a testament to the hard work of brilliant teachers, but also to the decision to stay the course and follow evidence-led policies used successfully in countries such as Singapore.

I know many people reading this will have had doubts about the new curriculum and approach when it was introduced more than 10 years ago, but it is clearly being brilliantly utilised by schools and is reaping rewards for young people.

Yet our new education secretary appears to think we need to change course.

Vocational pathways at 14

I say “appears” because the policies announced by the government over the summer have raised far more questions than they have answered.

What we do know is that Lucy Powell believes there has been an “overfocus on academic outcomes”, that she wants new vocational pathways for children at 14, and that she wants these new pathways to be in place by 2028.

I disagree on every count.

High academic standards do not hold children back, they lift them up. One of Britain’s greatest success stories in recent years has been proving that children from ordinary backgrounds, with the help of fantastic teachers, can achieve world-class qualifications in state schools. That should be celebrated.

And on the change to vocational qualifications at 14, I do understand why people want more vocational options to be available, and I’ve talked a lot about the Conservatives’ plan to offer that.

Opportunities for post-16

But closing off academic options at 14 is too early, and we know from history it doesn’t work. Labour’s 14-19 reforms in 2005 were intended to strengthen vocational education, but what happened was that children from poorer backgrounds were channelled away from rigorous academic subjects. Instead of raising aspirations, the system lowered expectations.

I fear we are now in danger of repeating that mistake.

None of this is an argument against technical education: quite the opposite. Britain needs more high-quality apprenticeships. But all young people deserve the benefit of a strong academic education first.

And to argue that vocational occupations don’t need an academic core is to misunderstand the highly technical nature of these jobs. An electrician needs to understand maths.

As for the proposed timeline, it is absurd. Teachers are already struggling with the welter of new guidance coming in for the new school year. It is for the birds to suggest that the government’s new technical pathways, pairing skills training with local employers, can simply be rolled out from September 2028.

Policy gap

We still don’t have the answers to some very basic questions. What qualifications will schools be expected to offer? What standards will schools be expected to meet? Do schools have the teachers, expertise and facilities required to deliver vocational training? And are ministers really preparing to tear up the new Ofsted framework yet again, expecting the inspectorate to produce another one within a year? Ridiculous.

These are fundamental changes, dropped over the summer as though the past two years had never happened. At the same time as these changes, schools will be expected to implement sweeping reforms to special educational needs and disabilities support, which, as is becoming something of a theme, remain desperately short on detail. And new vocational qualifications for post 16 are also in the works. This is not a recipe for success.

Teachers could be forgiven for feeling frustrated by yet another change of direction and another grand announcement that produces more questions than answers. It is the Department for Education’s rinse-and-repeat formula.

As the new school year begins, I hope teachers have managed to get some well-earned respite. I want to thank each and every one of you for your hard work and commitment in a difficult climate. I am grateful to those of you who have contacted me to point out issues to raise and questions to ask. Please continue to do so.

To do my job is a privilege and I will continue to pursue it with the same energy and purpose that I know you bring to your students every day.

Laura Trott is the Conservative Party’s shadow education secretary