‘COVID is to blame not the council’ — that is the response from Isle of Wight Tories to criticism they haven’t met their 2017 manifesto pledge on Island schools.
At the last council elections, a key part of their manifesto was that 25% of schools would be judged outstanding by Ofsted within 4 years…and all schools would be rated good.
Social media and opposition parties recently picked up on the failure to deliver but the man who was cabinet member for children’s education, Councillor Paul Brading, says it is the pandemic that is to blame.
Responding to a joke, a post on the Isle of Wight Liberal Democrats Facebook page said:
“It may be a mock-up but the education failure is real. Conservatives are keeping quiet about their promises which they failed to deliver.”
According to schools watchdog Ofsted, only three-quarters of schools (36) are deemed as good, 11 require improvement and one is inadequate.
Since 2017, only 7 schools have improved their rating whereas 11 dropped down, 1 (Christ The King College) falling to the lowest measure, ‘inadequate’.
Cllr Brading said having inherited a ‘very low’ 57% of schools with good or better ratings from the previous independent administration, they immediately set a ‘much higher and achievable target’. The figure had increased to 75% and schools were being fully supported to reach good.
Due to COVID-19, however, national school inspections were stopped and only remote monitoring assessments on requires improvement and lower-rated schools have been made since then.
Cllr Brading questioned how they were supposed to increase the number of good schools when inspections had paused. He said:
“In 2020 we were confident seven schools were due an inspection and all would achieve a ‘good’ rating, which would have pushed our percentage to near 90 per cent, an incredible achievement from what we inherited.
“This included three secondary schools that would have meant 100 per cent of secondary would be rated ‘good’.
“Several special Covid virtual inspections have happened and all the schools were praised for the incredible efforts of their staff, with other broader comments on the school, that support our own internal monitoring views that they are on a journey to be ‘good’.”
Cllr Brading said the aim ‘still remains’ that all children are taught in a good, or better, school.
He also thanked all school staff for their work and dedication during the pandemic and said the whole Island was proud of their achievements.
The council dont meet any targets. The give it the big we will to get elected then forget about it. Only targets they meet is there own pay rise and how to charge us more.
Just in case there was ever any doubt, everyone now knows what to do next Thursday.
Aide memoire: vote for the non-Tory candidate most likely to win, regardless of your political leanings.
The only target they hit was to give us the maximum council tax increase allowed when most people are struggling right now… well all except the 2nd homeowners and holibobs.
the PM yesterday complaining about labour and their council charges but no one from county hall can explain to me why my band b charge is the same as band h in westminster perhaps island echo could ask our dave
It’s a handy excuse.
Excuses Excuses, wrong weather wrong this wrong that wrong wrong wrong what’s really wrong is they don’t know what they are doing …. except putting up our council tax bumping up the council pension cutting services….
Wasting money on island road’s floating (non) push me pull me bridge passing the buck and still wanting votes !!!!!
Apart from that several numptys will get in because there is no competition so not worth getting out of bed for …….
No more Brown envelopes just be honest alas no chance of that they all have degrees in being evasive !!!!
this is a result of generations of leftie hand wringing do gooding teachers that tell you that “it is not your fault, you are not a loser, you are a winner for taking part”
so now we have adults who think that nothing is ever their fault and society should be grateful that they are taking part.
I have always been of the opinion that all forms of local government should be scrapped.Everything should be centrally funded and the day to day running of local services handled by people employed to do it.
Anyone running for local office is only doing it for their own betterment.
Pass the buck whenever they can, a bit like pass the parcel and the music will be ending soon.
Who can they blame next if they get re-elected?
Oh yes, everyone but themselves.