Education is poised for return to Council (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Bradford board looking set to recommend ‘in-house’ provision

4:58pm Tuesday 1st December 2009 in Education By Jo Winrow

The next step in bringing education back under Bradford Council control is expected to be agreed next week.

Senior councillors are being advised to accept the recommendations by a board set up to review how best to manage education services once a private contract expires in 2011.

The group believes that the responsibility for delivering education should rest in-house and that this will provide a “coherent and flexible approach”.

It follows comments by Schools Secretary Ed Balls a month ago that he was “minded” to end the Government’s intervention which currently prevents the Council from running the district’s schools. This was introduced after a highly-critical Ofsted report in 2000.

Serco, trading as Education Bradford, signed a ten-year £360 million deal to provide education support services to the Council, and this expires at the end of July 2011.

A report to the Council’s executive, which meets on Tuesday in City Hall, outlines the work undertaken so far, including a district-wide consultation with questionnaires, public meetings, presentations to staff, parents, pupils and governors in schools, workshops and a flyer which was delivered to all households.

A special board has overseen the consultation and the appraisal of any options for the future. As well as recommending that education services need to have a strong, unified leadership and that this is best done by the Council, it has also called for a full Council debate on the issue and that a strong commissioning framework for schools be set up.

In addition, the executive is asked to authorise the strategic director for services to children and young people to take any decisions necessary to make sure the new structures are in place to enable a smooth transitional period.

In a joint statement, Council leader and Conservative group leader Councillor Kris Hopkins, Liberal Democrat group leader Councillor Jeanette Sunderland and Labour group leader Councillor Ian Greenwood said: “Educating our children is the Council’s top priority and we are agreed it is appropriate that responsibility for this service is returned to the local authority at the end of the current contract.

“Over recent months, we have been working very closely together with partners, including Government, to seek to achieve this end. “We have agreed that the executive will refer the matter to the next meeting of full Council where, it is hoped, a unanimous view can be reached.”

Denise Faulconbridge, Education Bradford’s managing director, said: “The report to the Council’s executive reflects the changing role of local authorities by acknowledging that a strong commissioning framework with schools should be established.

“We welcome this as, if the opportunity arises, Serco would wish to continue working in partnership with the Council and Bradford’s schools, on the delivery of quality education services and to build on the significant progress we are now seeing across the district.

“As the Council’s current strategic partner, we will provide ongoing support to the Council as it makes plans for the future of education in the district as we continue to support schools to improve outcomes for children and young people.”