Prospect of Classroom Sizes of 60+ Angers Cllr (Leeds Liberal Democrats)

Leeds Liberal Democrats <info@leedslibdems.org.uk>

Prospect of Classroom Sizes of 60+ Angers Cllr

July 29, 2005 9:24 PM

Cllr Penny Ewens has reacted angrily to news that Education minister Jacqui Smith accepts that the Government's workload reforms could mean classes of up to 60 pupils; the Minister says that she approves of the moves "if head teachers think it is right for their schools". Reducing primary school class sizes was one of the five election pledges on which Labour came to power in 1997. Ministers have been forced to backtrack to make room for reforms to working hours which give teachers more time to prepare lessons. Some schools already claim they lack the resources to cover staff while they are out of the classroom under these reforms. Head teachers have warned that this will mean doubling class sizes or giving unqualified assistants a bigger role.

Cllr Penny Ewens (Lib Dem Hyde Park & Woodhouse) said "As a school governor and former teacher myself I feel that schools have been given such inadequate help from the Government on implementing these reforms, that they are rapidly becoming the number one headache for headteachers. As well as class sizes of sixty, schools face a lack of qualified staff and will have to make cuts elsewhere in their budgets to fund these changes so that it will not be possible to maintain the many improvements which are showing in our schools . Teachers need preparation time, as the reforms require, but the Government's approach is inflexible and lacks understanding of the requirements of the reforms."