Our schools and universities are still hampered by regional inequality
4 min read
The Education Secretary was right to identify "baked in" educational inequalities. The new Government must do its utmost to address them once and for all.
The hard work and determination shown by A-Level students who received their results last week is a true testament to their characters; our nation's children have had a lot to compete with over the last few years.
Their learning and exams were significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, their schools closing for fear of crumbling walls and ceilings due to Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC).
Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) provision reached a “crisis” point, as described by then-Education Secretary Gillian Keegan, and was left in “utter disarray”, according to the local government ombudsman.
All of these things paint our education system as in a worrying state.
Nearly three-quarters of headteachers said they will have to increase class sizes due to insufficient funding, with almost 60 per cent claiming they will have to reduce their curriculum offer, in a summer report from the Association of School and College Leaders. Last year, the National Education Union found that one in six teachers plan to quit the education sector within the next two years, increasing to two-fifths planning to quit within five years.
SEND provision came up significantly on the doorstep during the General Election – highlighting the worry it is causing families across the country. As a former Children and Families Shadow Minister, and as the former Chair of the Dyslexia and other Specific Learning Difficulties All-Party Group, I know that the challenges facing students, parents and teachers were exacerbated by a system breakdown and a severe lack of funding for Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) under the last Government.
Between 2019 and 2023, the number of EHCPs issued rose by 72 per cent but dedicated SEND funding only rose by 42 per cent. Children have been left waiting far too long to receive the support they are entitled to and need in the classroom. I agree with the Children’s Commissioner for England Dame Rachel de Souza who emphasised the need for “radical reform” in SEND provision, in order to address the delays in support.
However, I know that the impact of these issues have been felt acutely by constituents like mine in the North East, where regional disparities hit the hardest and where students are impacted by rising poverty, less investment in education and worse access to educational resources.
I know first hand the challenges that regional inequality inflicts, but education can be its biggest equaliser.
Unfortunately under the last government we have seen the educational attainment gap between students in the north and south widen. Last summer, the attainment gaps for the top A-level grades between the north and south of England remained larger than before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The new Government should do its utmost to remove societally entrenched barriers that create regional inequality.
I was pleased to see my neighbouring MP and Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson commit to turning around “baked-in” educational inequalities, so that all young people have a chance to “get on in life” after leaving school.
With poverty levels and regional disparity rising due to the tight grip of the cost of living crisis, it is right that the Government has introduced a Child Poverty strategy. For those in the North East, where this year more than 30 per cent of pupils were eligible for free school meals compared to just 19 per cent in the south-east and east of England, I know the impact this strategy can have on increasing opportunities and reducing stigma.
More action must be taken in higher education, to ensure that where our young people come from does not inhibit their ability to go to university. Worryingly UCAS figures show that 33.4 per cent of 18-year-olds in North East England had applied to university by 30 June this year, whereas that figure was significantly higher in London, at 59.2 per cent. It is a challenge for our new Government to make policy changes that improve our education system and, importantly, break those attitudes and societal barriers that prevent our young people from achieving their full potential.
I believe education can be the greatest tool to tackle inequality, but it can also be the place it becomes most entrenched, if Government policy does not seek to address it.
I am running to become Education Select Committee Chair, because having seen the impact on students in my constituency and across the country, I know we must scrutinise Government policy to ensure that it genuinely helps to alleviate poverty, increase opportunity and provide all students with the education they deserve to have the best start in life.
Sharon Hodgson is the Labour MP for Washington and Gateshead South.
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