Forward with ROSLA 1951–1964

Abstract

Over the 13 years of Conservative government between 1951 and 1964, the position and prospects of the ROSLA project were transformed. At the beginning of this period, at a time of acute shortages, there was a strong reaction against the raising of the school-leaving age (ROSLA) to 15, which had been achieved in 1947 but was compromised by the partial implementation of secondary schools for all. ROSLA could appear to be an expensive mistake and many groups looked to other educational priorities rather than follow up on the commitment that had been made in the Education Act of 1944 for ROSLA to 16. By the end of the 1950s, though, the general indifference and suspicion of ROSLA had changed to widespread enthusiasm for this cause. This was largely due to the efforts of the Central Advisory Council for Education (England) (CACE), which led to a strong endorsement of ROSLA in the Crowther Report, 15 to 18.1 Over the following five years, reservations remained across the political spectrum and even within the government itself, over both the financial cost involved and the educational implications of such a commitment, but at the start of 1964, Sir Alec Douglas-Home’s brief tenure as prime minister was marked by an undertaking that ROSLA would go ahead by 1970–1971, with all the preparations that this would involve. This debate was of clear significance educationally, for example, in terms of assumptions about ability and arguments concerning selection and common schooling.KeywordsPrime MinisterLabour PartyConservative GovernmentEducation SpendingReduce Class SizeThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.