Educational Opportunities: Working Classes

Baroness Taylor of Bolton Excerpts

Thursday 5th March 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Taylor of Bolton (Lab)]

My Lords, I congratulate my noble friend on securing this debate and on her speech today. Like her, I have been convinced for many years that if we are to really change the life chances of many people, we have to start with education, particularly early years education. Also like her, I am very proud of what the Blair Government did in establishing Sure Start. I recall seeing the direct input in my constituency, Dewsbury, and in my hometown, Bolton. I am proud of those local authorities which are still, despite all the cuts to their budgets, able to prioritise this area.

I have to admit that I did not believe that we would be standing here having to make the case for early years education, given all the evidence that has been there for so many years. Instead, I get alarmed when I talk to teachers and hear them report the lack of verbal skills and the difficult social and emotional problems that many four year-olds have. They are coming into school today just not ready or prepared for school at all. In my limited time I shall make just two points.

First, I shall mention a theme that has run through education policy in this country for a very long time, and one that I believe has reinforced the problem of underachievement of working-class children and young people. This theme is summed up by the word “meritocracy.” On the face of it, who can be opposed to a meritocracy? The idea is all very well if you have a perfect world, where everyone has the chance to progress, to shine, to reach their potential and to have choices about how they live their lives, but we do not live in that kind of world. We do not have, and we should recognise that we do not have, a level playing field. The fact that a few people manage to come through does not validate the whole system of education that we have at the moment. The disparities in life chances and outcomes are massive at present in a whole host of ways, including health, financial security, educational opportunities and work opportunities. The best, the most effective and, indeed, the only way to really counter the disadvantages of so many people is to have early intervention.

My second point, which my noble friend touched on, is that early intervention—and probably pre-birth preparation—can and does make a difference. That is why I believe that the lessons of Sure Start should be revisited. Sure Start directly helped thousands of children; it helped their parents as well. Partly it helped them to become better and more confident parents, but it also helped them to take more control of their own lives and to look for opportunities for themselves. In particular, young parents—who themselves may have had limited opportunities and may not have had a good educational experience—were helped to understand the importance of early years education. Many did not appreciate, or have the confidence to get involved with, their children’s education; they were encouraged to do that to understand its importance. I think everybody knows that once a parent is involved in a child’s education, the job of any educational institution—nursery, primary, or secondary—becomes easier, and the ease with which teachers can make progress is much improved.

My noble friend said that education is the most powerful lever for change. There is so much evidence that this is the case, and I urge the Government to revisit Sure Start to encourage and provide the proper delivery of real opportunities for many working-class children.