Social Progress Party
Politics to serve all of society, not just the wealthy and powerful.
Education
Finding the right educational path for all, regardless of personal finances:
Nationalise early childcare; reform VAT status on private schools; restore routes to vocational qualifications; replace Ofsted; no state funded religious schools; abolish league tables.
Underlying Principles:
Children and teenagers are the future of a society. How they are treated, socialised, and educated has a direct impact not only on the lives they will lead, but also on their communities, families, friends and future employers and colleagues. A supportive and successful education environment is an indicator of a successful and progressive society, and it should be funded accordingly.
Different forms of education are acceptable, but all children must be assessed based on nationally consistent measures.
There should be no publicly funded education which is explicitly based on any religion, or restricted only to children of families that share common religious beliefs.
Any assessment of the quality and compliance of education provision should be produced in a collegiate and transparent manner.
There are four main stages of education, each should be treated distinctly, although always with an eye on successful transition for the child (and parent) from one stage to the next; these are: Early Childcare, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary.
Proposed Education Policies not specific to any one Educational stage
Existing private schools can elect whether they wish to retain charitable status and avoid having to charge VAT on fees, or register as a business, in which case they will be liable for VAT.
Schools that retain charitable status must prove that they are making a meaningful social contribution, the minimum requirement for this shall be that (i) their sports facilities genuinely be made available to local state schools that have materially worse equivalent facilities (or none), AND (ii) they accept at least 10% of their pupils selected randomly from any applicants within a defined catchment area. The school will receive the standard state funding per pupil for this 10%, but there will be no charge to the parent(s). No parent may simultaneously apply for both a free place and a paid place for their child.
o Increase VAT raised or reduce pressure for places on local state schools.
o Increase the breadth of educational choice available to parents.
o Establish a clearer link between the social contribution and charitable status of private schools, while simultaneously increasing the mixing of children of currently separated social and economic groups.
o Enrich the breadth of social experience and integration of many children and their families.
o Provide opportunities for less advantaged children to access an enhanced educational environment and potentially beneficial future social contacts (both diluting and widening the impact of the “old school tie” effect).
No state funding for religious schools, these must become private or drop any religious doctrines and restrictions.
o Reduce the risk of the use of public funds for religious indoctrination.
o Reduce the risk of religious educational “ghettoes”.
o End the possibility of a child being excluded from a provider of state education based on their religion, or lack thereof.
o Encourage the integration of different social groups.
No league tables for exam results.
o Discourage engineering of school populations to improve league table positions.
o Reduce emphasis on ‘teaching to the test’.
o Encourage pupil selection of GCSE subjects based on interest and enthusiasm rather than aptitude.
Reduced choice of schools for the parent(s) and a clamp down on manipulation of catchment areas.
o Encourage social integration and parental support for schools by restricting choice.
o Reduce the likelihood of pupils having to travel long distances to school which increases traffic, increases fatigue, makes it less likely that schoolfriends will live close by, and diminishes local communities.
Increased funding to match improved nutritional requirements for school meals and vending machines.
o Studies have shown that healthier, more nutritious meals foster better pupil interaction, concentration and learning. Why reduce the impact of funds spent on teaching by saving money on food?
o Many families are not in a position to provide consistently healthy food for their children, by providing this in schools we can help support those families and reduce the impact of food poverty on educational attainment.
Replacement of OFSTED with an alternative approach to monitoring performance and compliance.
o To reduce “window dressing” by schools and stress on teaching staff and headteachers.
o To move away from simple summarised assessments of a school’s overall capability and towards a marking system whereby teaching departments and school environments and processes are each marked out of ten. This allows a clear understanding of a school’s strengths and weaknesses, and where improvements may need to be made.
No mobile phone use allowed in any schools – phones to be surrendered at first registration and returned at afternoon registration.
o Reduce the distraction, bullying, gossip and misinformation that can impact a pupil’s engagement in school, whether in class or at break.
o Increase engagement in classes, clubs and physical exercise at break time.
o Increase face to face social interaction and improve social skills.
