2 Sep 2018
The Scottish Conservatives have offered to work together with the SNP Government to reboot plans for Scottish education, party leader Ruth Davidson has said today.
It comes after Education Secretary John Swinney dumped his flagship legislation to boost Scottish schools at the end of the last parliamentary term.
Davidson says the stark decline in education under this SNP government needs addressed, and last term’s embarrassing climb-down by Nicola Sturgeon’s team signalled an unwillingness to fight for meaningful improvements.
With the SNP’s Programme for Government being unveiled on Tuesday, the Scottish Conservatives say they will meet ministers to discuss changes that put more power in the hands of headteachers and parents – as originally proposed by the SNP.
The Scottish Conservatives are also urging Ministers to press ahead with measures to improve literacy and numeracy rates.
The Scottish Conservatives support
• a new headteachers’ charter being enshrined in legislation, so heads are in charge of raising attainment.
• plans to give headteachers more powers over their schools, including over recruitment, school management and structure, and curriculum content
• moves to give parents more say on school improvement and school policies.
• the reintroduction of international literacy and numeracy surveys for Scottish schools
• the cancellation of P1 tests
• an independent review into the decline in subject choice in the later years of Secondary education.
Writing in today’s Mail on Sunday, party leader Ruth Davidson said:
“Nicola Sturgeon should go back to the SNP’s playbook of 2007 and signal a willingness to listen to other parties at Holyrood.
“Over the last 12 months, working across the aisle with Scottish Conservatives has been omerta to Nicola Sturgeon’s government. The demands of her political playbook have taken precedence over the desire of the public just to get things done.
“On education, we on the Scottish Conservative benches are ready and willing to work with the SNP to change children’s life chances for the better.
“Handing more power to headteachers and parents is the right thing to do. We are ready to sit down and thrash out a way forward. Is the SNP prepared to do the same?”
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