Queen’s Speech

Lord Storey Excerpts

Wednesday 12th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Storey (LD)]

My Lords, we have a school system in England which is geared towards a knowledge-based curriculum and academic success. The hallmarks of that success are passing enough GCSEs at suitable grades to move into the sixth form and then achieving the required number of A-levels to move on to university. At every successful step on this journey, the pupils are praised. But, of course, not every pupil is able to cope with an academic-based education. We know that 40% or so of our pupils would be much better suited to a vocational education, which would give them the skills and opportunities for success in the jobs market and provide the much-needed skills that our nation needs.

Over the years we have seen our further education sector underfunded and downgraded and FE teachers paid less than teachers in the school sector. We have sat back and marvelled at the success of other countries such as Germany, Switzerland and Finland, which have created an education system that is tailor-made for the individual needs of every pupil and which provides the necessary skills for the economy. I therefore welcome the Government bringing forward a Bill on lifetime skills. As the Secretary of State said in his lifetime skills guarantee and post-16 education Statement in October 2020:

“I have been determined to raise the status of further, technical and vocational education … this sector has been overlooked and underserved, playing second fiddle to higher education. All too often, it has not given the young people and adults of this country the skills that businesses are crying out for, or enabled them to pursue the careers they dreamed of.”—[Official Report, Commons, 1/10/20; col. 541.]


So, yes, we will work constructively on this Bill, and see a lifetime skills guarantee and flexible lifelong learning entitlement as crucial to its success.

The Covid pandemic has played havoc with our children’s education. We have seen an increase in undesirable behaviour in pupils, some minor but persistent and some more extreme. Anxiety has become a growing issue—about catching Covid-19 and infecting family members, missing school and not being ready for examinations. Poorer physical health has also been noticeable for some children. School staff’s well-being has been affected, with constant moving around classrooms and no staffroom support from each other. Primary schools have seen a negative curriculum impact on key stage 1 pupils’ social communication and listening, speech, phonic knowledge and gross motor skills. Regression in fine motor skills is a particular concern; some pupils are now not able to hold a pencil. Some subjects were not taught in the depth they usually are because of the focus on maths and English. The effectiveness of remote education is varied. Many children with special educational needs and/or disabilities were not attending school and were struggling with remote learning, and were at risk of abuse and/or neglect. Even more schools report even more children being home schooled. By the way, this is not me saying this. This is not me reporting from some charity or teachers’ union handout or briefing; this is from the Government’s own Ofsted.

The Government’s response has been mixed. Laptops have been made available but head teachers have told me there have not been enough laptops for every child who needed them and the scheme was slow to get off the ground. The catch-up programme has given an extra £80 per pupil. Is this catch-up money really sufficient for schools in deprived areas or with large numbers of children with special needs? The national tutoring programme provides one-to-one catch-up, with schools having to pay 25% of the cost—and, by the way, if the tutor is off sick, they still have to pay that cost. Many pupils have found it difficult to relate to virtual strangers. Schools have also had to cope with pupils’ well-being and mental health problems.

I hope that we are now getting back to normal in our schools but government should give schools the time and the resources. Let us take the pressures and burdens of SATS off the shoulders of our primary schools, at least for a few years. Again, let us use Ofsted as a supportive mentor, giving schools detailed help and advice on the road to recovery. When we need to return to full inspections, let us make them initially light touch. We are now seeing thousands of children being home schooled. We have to make sure that those home-schooled children are safeguarded and taught in a proper and appropriate way. At the very least, let us agree that if you choose to home teach your child, that has to be registered with the local authority and the local authority has to make a visit at least once a year. I also worry about pre-school and nursery but I do not have time to deal with that.

Children have not only lost their schooling; perhaps more importantly, they have lost part of their childhood.