Theresa May unveiled a blizzard of new education reforms yesterday including grammar school entrance exams at 14 and 16 and ordering independent schools to do more for the state system.
In a speech that ruffled feathers on all sides of the education establishment, she announced:
* A second chance for children who fail the 11-plus, with the opportunity to enter a grammar at 14 and 16.
* A threat to remove the tax-free status of fee-paying schools, with “a tougher test” being considered on the amount of public benefit they will be expected to provide in future.
May hit back against claims her plans would fuel inequality by insisting she wanted to turn Britain into “the world’s great meritocracy”. She promised more help for children from low-income working families earning between £16,000 and £21,000, saying the current policy of directing cash to those on free school meals was too crude.
Selection systems would be made more “tutor-proof” by relying on wider criteria than exams that children could be coached to pass.
The new proposals came on top of the plans trailed in the media that could see thousands more selective schools across Britain, with the 163 grammars allowed to expand and new ones being set up.
They triggered fierce opposition from some quarters, with the chief inspector of schools, Sir Michael Wilshaw, warning of a “backward” step that would “halt” the dramatic recent improvements in London schools.
Conservative MP Dr Sarah Wollaston said the reforms clashed with May’s own vow to reduce social inequality. She said: “I think we need to be very careful that we’re not ending up giving one message but introducing policies that go in the opposite direction.”
May’s threat to the tax-free status of independent schools appeared to borrow from ex-Labour leader Ed Miliband’s policy manifesto.
Praising Westminster School and Eton among others for lending expertise and facilities to local state schools, she said: “I want all independent schools with the appropriate capacity and capability to take these kinds of steps.”
She suggested they could offer free places to poorer children or even open and manage new free schools. And in a clear threat to the finances of those who refuse, she said: “Through their charitable status, private schools collectively reduce their tax bills by millions every year. And I want to consult on how we can amend Charity Commission guidance for independent schools to enact a tougher test on the amount of public benefit required to maintain charitable status.”
Speaking in central London, the prime minister gave a passionate defence of her ideas. She said the Brexit referendum had exposed a hunger for “real, profound change” and she set her goal as “a good school place for every child”. She declared: “I want Britain to become the world’s great meritocracy.”