KCC Response to the Green Paper

KCC welcomes the opportunity to make a response (DOCX, 18.9 KB) to the Government Green Paper consultation which is due to close in the next couple of weeks. We recognise that this consultation on proposals to expand grammar school provision is peculiar for Kent as we are in a different place to most other areas in the country as we already have Grammar Schools. However one of the proposals in the Green Paper to allow for the creation of new Grammar Schools could give us greater flexibility for the future, where appropriate, as we respond to the need to expand provision across the whole Secondary sector in response to increasing pupil numbers. The preference in Kent is to maintain the current balance of selective and non-selective provision.

We welcome the fact that the Green Paper references making Grammar Schools more sociably accessible for less advantaged learners to increase social mobility, and this is in tune with Kent County Council’s recent Select Committee report

We also welcome the commitment to ensuring Faith schools remain inclusive. Part of the Green Paper references the involvement of Universities as a sponsor of schools. Our response to this part of the consultation includes asking whether universities have the capacity, capability or desire to play a part supporting schools moving forward. We would welcome this where there is capacity to be an effective sponsor with a track record in school leadership, governance and improvement.

Overall, as a government strategy for improving education we make a very clear point that the proposals do little for the majority of schools that are not Grammar schools and we would want to see proposals that support non-selective schools as well as selective schools. We would also welcome the development of a mix of selective and non-selective schools within multi academy trusts. We see this as a positive way forward for Kent to provide education for all.