Schools

[Shabby Russian]

I have resigned from the Tory Party today over the issue of education. I cannot actively campaign for a party that puts commercial interests above children's education.

Sad to hear that Proth. Obviously I don't see eye to eye with you on politics, but I think it is important to have in any society a plurality of political opinion and for people to engage in politics. However I respect your decision to leave the party if this is such an important issue for you. Blind political loyalty without integrity is dangerous.

That said not sure I agree with your assessment on the Govt's education strategy. I don't doubt their desire, but their competence and knowledge of the school system they are supposed to be in charge. Current strategies to deal with coronavirus and education has been a catalogue of mistakes. The Govt have stated a desire for all primary school children back at school before the summer break, but didn't seem to understand that this would be impossible given the guidelines they were instructing schools to keep.

They keep raising expectations with parents and the children that schools will get back to 'normal', but are not providing schools with the resources needed to fulfil those aspirations, and them teachers/ head teachers get the blame for a situation they are not responsible for.

For example the Govt seem to be running with the idea of providing more building space for schools to accommodate smaller classroom sizes, but didn't seem to understand that this would be pointless without a significant increase in teachers. Teachers that would break the budget of the vast majority of primary schools (if not all)

Throughout this coronavirus situation the Govy have been guilty of telling the public what they want to hear without providing the wherewithal to meet these aspirations.

[baggy1]

I have resigned from the Tory Party today over the issue of education. I cannot actively campaign for a party that puts commercial interests above children's education.

Wow Proth, I can appreciate how hard that decision would be for you. I can also understand the frustration that it will bring with the current leadership and the populist agenda. Sometimes you have to make a stand to make a change.

As Shabs said we are from different sides of the coin currently but there are a lot of good centrist politicians that need to represent the majority of this country. Over the last few years the right and left wings of each party have taken over and it has become too tribal. I joined the Labour party to try and move them back to the centre, I hope that you can rejoin the Tories at some point in the future as that will show me that they have moved back towards the centre.

[Derek Hardballs]

I have resigned from the Tory Party today over the issue of education. I cannot actively campaign for a party that puts commercial interests above children's education.

Sad to hear that Proth. Obviously I don't see eye to eye with you on politics, but I think it is important to have in any society a plurality of political opinion and for people to engage in politics. However I respect your decision to leave the party if this is such an important issue for you. Blind political loyalty without integrity is dangerous.

That said not sure I agree with your assessment on the Govt's education strategy. I don't doubt their desire, but their competence and knowledge of the school system they are supposed to be in charge. Current strategies to deal with coronavirus and education has been a catalogue of mistakes. The Govt have stated a desire for all primary school children back at school before the summer break, but didn't seem to understand that this would be impossible given the guidelines they were instructing schools to keep.

They keep raising expectations with parents and the children that schools will get back to 'normal', but are not providing schools with the resources needed to fulfil those aspirations, and them teachers/ head teachers get the blame for a situation they are not responsible for.

For example the Govt seem to be running with the idea of providing more building space for schools to accommodate smaller classroom sizes, but didn't seem to understand that this would be pointless without a significant increase in teachers. Teachers that would break the budget of the vast majority of primary schools (if not all)

Throughout this coronavirus situation the Govy have been guilty of telling the public what they want to hear without providing the wherewithal to meet these aspirations.

Their entire philosophy under Cummings and the Voteleave cabal are strangers to the truth when it comes to informing the population what their intentions are. I’m not sure whether it’s because they can’t say as it would destroy their base support, whether they have no respect for the general public or whether they don’t know another way of operating. I have my suspicions it’s all three sadly. 

Teachers are getting the blame (thanks to certain media outlets) but the lies and misdirection I sense are wearing thin with all but the most cultish Voteleave types. There are just 13 kids out of a class of 32 that are currently attending school in my lads year. Why? I reckon it’s because people are questioning a government whose handling of this pandemic has been erratic to say the least. If you want people to trust you then don’t play games with the truth.

Credit to you Proth for making that decision. Not because I don’t like this incarnation of the Conservative party but because you have the courage of your convictions. I can’t join a party currently as I’m not believe it or not political in a capital P way. I do want the country to move back to a more reasoned, fair, pragmatic, caring centralist position as extremes be it right or left are tearing this country and it’s reputation to pieces and who benefits? An elite few who stand to make / not lose billions.

[Protheroe]

The truth is that 3 (THREE) people under 19 without serious underlying comorbidity have died from Covid 19 in England.

There is no reason why kids should not be in formal education, particularly when there are so many community centres, libraries, exhibition centres, government offices and church halls going unused to provide social distancing.

My political credo has always been about the art of the possible. This government hasn't even tried to deal with this situation. They have prioritised the reopening of Primark, McDonalds and Wetherspoons above the education of children. There will be a generation of kids who will never catch up, there will be many who will be abused and exploited without the ability to tell a teacher they trust. I cannot be part of that.

[baggy1]

As you know Proth, I've been monitoring the excess deaths for weeks now and the Under 45s en masse have only seen an increase of 166 for the year to date up to the 5th June. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out that kids can go back with caution, teachers have to be protected as well but that can also be worked out (they do it in tescos, I'm sure it can be worked out in schools). 

The problem appears to be the inability to do more than one thing at a time for this mob, and they will focus every time on the loudest shouters.

[Protheroe]

They do it in tescos, I'm sure it can be worked out in schools.

A fair summation of the current situation.

[baggy1]

They do it in tescos, I'm sure it can be worked out in schools.

A fair summation of the current situation.

The problem is that they are afraid of their own shadows. They've made that many mistakes during this whole mess it's caused them to become paralysed. They just wait to see what will appease the masses and do that. That is not leadership by any stretch of the imagination.

[Ossian]

I do genuinely believe that the government has employed a strategy of putting ideas and announcements into the public domain and waiting to see how they float, on the basis that if something is unworkable there'll be plenty of people quick to let them know about it. That isn't government, it's flailing around in the dark.

Interesting though that - for all the diversity of opinions on this board - there are so many of us who find ourselves apparently politically homeless.

[foreveralbion]

i had some sympathy with the government at the start because of the uniqueness of this virus.

their handling of it though has been nothing short of appalling.

id agree with oss that they do seem to float ideas and adjust policy accordingly.

latest issue is those shielding in england.

this runs out on the 30th of june and people still have no idea what happens then.

[Shabby Russian]

I do genuinely believe that the government has employed a strategy of putting ideas and announcements into the public domain and waiting to see how they float, on the basis that if something is unworkable there'll be plenty of people quick to let them know about it. That isn't government, it's flailing around in the dark.

Interesting though that - for all the diversity of opinions on this board - there are so many of us who find ourselves apparently politically homeless.

Sums up what I think .

In fairness to the Govt I don't think they have prioritised opening shops etc over school. The hope was that all primary school children would have a month's worth of education. The problem was that they were asking for the impossible, all alternatively they were misleading the public as to what was possible.

I also think they had the wrong priorities within education - far more important to get years 10 and 12 back into full time education than any year in primary school, and easier to comply with social distancing rules as well.