The Education Reform Bill ‐ 44 years of progress?

Abstract

The Education Reform Bill is contrasted with the 1944 Education Act, especially in regard to the schools sector and the responsibilities of local education authorities (LEAs). The 1944 Act is seen as part of the formation of a Welfare State after the devastation and social upheaval of the war, in which educational opportunity and notions of a just society were guiding principles. The 1988 bill is seen as based on the spirit of consumerism, individual entrepreneurism and competition: the values of the market. The contrast is examined specifically in relationship to policies for access to education, where a right based on citizenship is compared with the differential opportunities required by a market place, and through consideration of the different roles required of LEAs in a planned, comprehensive public service compared with a mixed economy of LEA and non‐LEA schools. It is argued that the strategic role of the LEA to plan and ensure provision as circumstances change will be more difficult to perform, a...