Topical Questions

Question: There was a great deal of anger in my constituency when the local media portrayed eight of our local secondary schools as falling short of the national school challenge target. In a selective area, where 25 per cent. of the kids are creamed off and sent to grammar schools, it is extremely difficult to meet that target, no matter how good a school is. Will my right hon. Friend give the head teachers involved an assurance that when the time for judgment comes, they will judged on added value and the quality of teaching in those schools?

Answer: My hon. Friend is quite right. Many high-performing schools that are in the national challenge category will get through the 30 per cent. threshold comfortably. They have our full support, but they are not failing schools at all. It is true that secondary moderns face greater challenges, which is why they need extra support. I have said that we will give extra support to secondary moderns to ensure that they overcome the extra barriers they face because of selection. It is also true that the majority of secondary modern schools are already above the 30 per cent. threshold. We will work with them, use their experience and expertise and, in some cases, partner them with other national challenge schools so that we can ensure that every school and every child gets what every parent wants—a good local school. We will ensure that the extra support is there, and that schools have our full support.

Secondary information