Cuts 'will not stop councils helping struggling schools'

11 Jan 11
Council leaders have denied head teachers' claims that budget cuts will leave them unable to help tackle poorly performing schools

By Lucy Phillips

11 January 2011

Council leaders have denied head teachers’ claims that budget cuts will leave them unable to help tackle poorly performing schools.

Responding yesterday to the government’s appointment of a new schools commissioner, Elizabeth Sidwell, the Association of School and College Leaders said they had concerns over her remit to ensure that councils tackled underperformance.

ASCL general secretary Brian Lightman said: ‘I strongly doubt that most local authorities will have the capacity to support or even identify underperforming schools. Local authority support for secondary schools is already patchy at best. With budget cuts, local authorities will not have the staff, services or resources to do this effectively.’

But the Local Government Association today said it was up to the job, and that councils maintained an important oversight role in a new schools system with increased numbers of autonomous academies and free schools.

Baroness Shireen Ritchie, chair of the LGA’s children and young people board, told Public Finance: ‘Some local authorities continue to provide school improvement services, often in alliance with other councils; others are content that there is a sufficient range of school improvement providers for schools to choose from. But every local authority continues to monitor the performance of schools in its area and, even in times of unprecedented budget cuts and reorganisation, will ensure that it has the staff and expertise to undertake this role and meet its legal duties.’

The government will formally announce the appointment of Sidwell, a former head teacher and now chief executive of the Haberdasher’s Aske’s Federation, as schools commissioner later this week.     

As well as ensuring councils are tackling poor performance she will champion the academy and free schools programme, working alongside new sponsors and those wanting to set up a new school.

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