LABOUR must take their share of the blame for the lack of social mobility in parts of Oxford.

After all, Labour in government at Westminster created the early academies.

Labour also ensured that local authorities couldn’t vire resources to schools that needed extra help.

Instead, Labour opted for a ‘give the cash to the schools’ policy. Along with the Tory changes under Michael Gove, this has severely curtailed the role of local government in education.

You describe me as an education expert, but I also fought and won election as a Lib Dem county councillor in 2013 for St Margaret’s Division because, having highlighted the poor performance of some schools in the city in 2011, I wanted to do something about it.

Lib Dems introduced the Pupil Premium where schools in Oxford receive the same amount per pupil as pupils in Tower Hamlets, something neither of the other main political parties achieved. Along with free infant school meals it isn’t a solution to the mobility issue, but may have helped schools more than any recent Labour or Tory education policy.

CLLR JOHN HOWSON
St Margaret’s Division, Oxfordshire County Council

Lib Dem spokesperson on education on Oxfordshire County Council