This in from Cllr Baker Smith on behalf of the Island Independents. Ed
The Island independent group have today challenged the Conservative “pledge” that all schools will be rated good or outstanding by Ofsted if Conservatives are elected in May as disingenuously riding on the success story of the last four years.
The Leader of the Island independent group Cllr Julia Baker-Smith said,
“When the Island Independents took over the IWC four years ago, the state of education left by the previous Conservative administration could only be described as abysmal. They had let down generations of the Island’s young people, with educational attainment levels among the lowest in the country, behind even the hardest hit inner city areas.
“Islanders were left with an educational system so bad, that Government had stepped in and put the Island under the highest level of intervention, a ministerial direction.
“The Island Conservatives know that the upward trend of educational standards on the Island isn’t down to them, yet, now the hard work undertaken by schools to fix the mess left by the Conservatives has been done, they step in on the coat tails of the school’s successes.”
Heavy focus by Indies to assist schools
Island Independents education spokesman Cllr Jonathan Bacon said,
“The schools, teachers and pupils across the Island have worked incredibly hard over the last four years and have brought about significant improvements in results being achieved with some areas matching and even exceeding national averages.
“The independent administration focused heavily on assisting schools in their improvement journey and in particular seeking to create a firm foundation from which improvements can flow.
“The important thing is that the work continues, and the concentration is on the children and their futures. We have seen before what happens when Conservatives use education as a political plaything. That is what led to the atrocious state of affairs in 2012 and necessitated much of the work to repair and rebuild the system that has taken place over the last four years.
“The last thing our children need are more hollow promises from the Conservatives that so badly let down previous generations. The Island Independents remain committed to continuing the school improvement journey hand in hand with Island schools, Island teachers and Island children.”
