Michael Gove says education is about freedom

It’s of vital importance to give headteachers greater freedoms over who they hire and how they reward them, over the curriculum… the school day, the ethos and the character of the school

Michael Gove is a big fan of freedom. When asked about education policies that the Conservatives will introduce if they win the next election, the shadow Schools Secretary uses the word ‘freedom’ repeatedly. He also believes that a lack of freedom for head teachers is one of the main failures of the current Government.

Mr Gove, who was taught at both state and independent schools, fizzes with passion and energy when talking about education, barely pausing for breath. Most of his ideas focus on the state sector - but the brevity of his proposals for independent schools is intended as a compliment to their head teachers. “The independent sector is successful – when things aren’t broke don’t fix them,” he says.

“Taken as a collective, Britain’s independent schools are world-class and attract students from across the globe. Our policy is to support success in education wherever it exists, whether state or independent.

“We want to celebrate achievements in independent schools. And we wouldn’t want to see such successes undermined by political interference or excessive bureaucracy.”

He loves Tony Blair

Like Tony Blair, whom he holds in high esteem (in 2004, Mr Gove infamously exclaimed ‘I can’t hold it back anymore; I love Tony Blair’), he believes that tapping into the ethos of independent schools is essential for the state sector to be successful.

“We recognise that one of the things that makes fee-paying schools successful is their independence. Independence can also work in the state sector. The 12 original City Technology Colleges outperform many fee-paying schools.

“If you have good leaders in schools, who have the freedom that academy status can bring, they can transform what is happening. It’s of vital importance to give headteachers greater freedoms over who they hire and how they reward them, over the curriculum they choose to follow, over the school day, the ethos and the character of the school.

“One of the most important is being able to depart from the national curriculum to a greater degree, to concentrate on numeracy and literacy.

“Other heads say they need to be able to vary salary structures, or would like to have a longer school day or school year, or order the IT equipment they want from the contract they want. Strong head teachers want freedom from paperwork, and control of their budgets, staffing, national curriculum and exclusions.”

If all this were granted, it would give head teachers unprecedented control over almost every aspect of their domain.

Many teaching unions already oppose academies (state schools that are independent from local authority control) because of their freedom to set teachers’ pay and conditions. It is unlikely they would countenance any greater control being handed to school leaders without furious opposition.

Heads hiring and firing 

Mr Gove would not give a direct answer when asked if heads should be able to hire and fire at will, saying: “They should have the power to retain the best possible people in teaching. Let’s be clear that we live in an increasingly competitive world. The single most important thing is to raise the level of aspiration.”

One way of tapping into the ambition of bright children from deprived backgrounds would be to revive the assisted places scheme, under which the Government paid part or all of some children’s independent school fees. It was introduced by the last Conservative government and abolished when Labour came to power in 1997.

Yet Mr Gove is categorical when asked if the Tories would reintroduce the programme. “No to assisted places,” he says. “Our aim is to make state schools better. We’re deeply concerned about the position that students from poorer backgrounds find themselves in.

“The correct answer is not to helicopter out a few talented children and leave their school to fail. It’s to transform the environment so the school is successful.

“Our plans are more ambitious, I don’t think it’s right to have excellent education simply for a few. Whatever the level of ability children have, it’s important to concentrate on stretching them.”

Adamant on grammar schools

He is similarly adamant on grammar schools, on which his party’s policy seems identical to that of the current Government. While neither the Conservatives nor Labour have any intention of provoking middle-class outrage by abolishing grammars, which include some of the highest achieving schools in the country, they both refuse to allow new ones to be created, because of the inequity suffered by pupils who fail to win a place and the effect on nearby schools.

Mr Gove denies that this stance is a fudge. He says: “Existing grammar schools are brilliant and we won’t do anything to undermine that status, but there should be no return to the 11-plus nationally. We want to improve education for all.”
He adds: “It’s exactly the same position as Tony Blair. The Government is now moving back - and has been over the last 18 months - to its left-wing comfort zone in education. But we want to accelerate the pace of reform that Blair put in place.”

Mr Gove is an admirer of one Blairite in particular: Andrew Adonis. Lord Adonis, the former schools minister (previously an academic and a journalist), was in charge of the academies programme but left unexpectedly last October to become the transport minister. Mr Gove would like to woo him back to education, and across the political divide to join a Conservative government, if the party won power in the next election. “Andrew Adonis still has a huge amount to offer education policy. I’d be very, very happy if he could be found a job in the education field [with the Conservatives].

“There should be better provision for gifted and talented students - nearly a fifth identified as such don’t go on to get five good GCSEs,” Mr Gove continues. “I think the national Gifted and Talented programme simply isn’t taken seriously, either by the Government or by some of the schools. The Government isn’t serious enough about providing stretch and challenge to children who have academic ability.

“Andrew Adonis was serious about it but it’s gone backwards now that he’s disappeared from the Department for Children, Schools and Families. I know other cabinet ministers are concerned about failure in this area.”

Charitable status

Currently one of the biggest concerns for independent schools is having to justify their charitable status. Under the new Charities Act, they will have to prove they provide public benefit, for example through bursaries or sharing facilities with neighbouring state schools.

The Charity Commission is issuing guidance on what this means for schools, but many heads remain worried. “I know there are initiatives across the country where independent schools are doing everything they can to ensure that their facilities and the expertise of their teachers are placed at the service of others,” says Mr Gove. “We would want to encourage that as much as possible, ensuring that some independent schools have a bigger chance to get involved in state education, through the academies plan and informally.

“The important thing is to make it easier rather than imposing bureaucracy. The whole Charity Commission process should be light touch and will provide the opportunity for independent schools to showcase the good work they do.”

 

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