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Press Release

Voice dismisses school vote plans as "election gimmick"

23 February 2010

Voice: the union for education professionals has dismissed plans – to be announced by Gordon Brown in a speech today (23 February 2010) – to promise parents a vote on whether struggling schools should be run by a different organisation – as an "impractical and unworkable election gimmick".

General secretary Philip Parkin said: "This is an election gimmick designed to try and make parents think they will have more power. In reality, such a scheme gives only an illusion of choice and it is highly unlikely it would ever work. It is impractical and unworkable and would create more bureaucracy, not less.

"If a school is 'underachieving' then action is required immediately to turn it around. Organising a vote, which would have to follow an opportunity for the competing organisations interested in taking over the school to extol their virtues to the parents, followed presumably by some form of legal process, would be a protracted procedure. The ballot box is not the way to organise a programme of school improvement.

"Elected local authorities and school governors have an important role to play. There has to be an appropriate and practical balance between direct democracy and electing individuals or committees to run things on our behalf. I doubt that any national or local government would be in favour of the electorate voting on every policy it introduced – otherwise what would be the point of councillors and MPs?

"What is the point of having education professionals and volunteer governors trained to manage schools if their expertise and work is to be disregarded and decision-making power given to the parent body? It is right that parents should have a view on the education of their children, but they have neither the knowledge, expertise nor responsibility to organise and deliver it.

"Voice remains unconvinced that choice – and therefore competition – is the way to produce an education system in which high quality provision is available to all."




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Voice: the union for education professionals

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