And the new Education Secretary is....Damian Hinds

[noblegiraffe]

Anyone got any opinions on him?

I was thinking that I didn't hate Justine Greening but then I remembered the whole grammar school thing. I wonder if we'll ever see the response to that consultation.

She was offered Work and Pensions but has decided to quit government completely instead. Apparently she really wanted to stay in Education. God knows why TM thought it was a good idea to move her, hope she does a Nicky Morgan and starts sniping at her trousers from the back benches.

Hopefully her and Morgan can get together. I reckon they’d be quite effective sniping at her trousers.

What do we know about Hinds?

18 years of experience working in pubs and hotels.
Went to a grammar school
Was on the education select committee 5 years ago.

Can’t say I’m bowled over by his CV.

If TES is right that Greening wasn’t really a fan of grammar schools but was just fronting TM’s policy, could this explain why she’s been moved?

Because having looked through the select committee report on social mobility Hinds was part of grammar schools are mentioned.

Greening hated grammar schools... it was a well-known bone of contention with No 10 and probably one of the reasons she's out.

That’s what worries me Irene.

No one at the DfE was in favour of grammar schools, it’s a bloody awful policy which came directly from Theresa May because the recently knighted Graham Brady (more sucking up to him ) told her to.

I thought Justine Greening put as good a front on it as she could, tbh.

Now you mention DfE I think I did know she was against them.

Hopefully Hinds won’t undo the good work that Greening had started.

On a slightly off topic note, how the fuck does David Davis still have a job though. Let alone the same one he’s been screwing up for the last 6 months.

Well that's it for the 50% Cap on faith free school admissions. He's a strong supporter of the Catholic Education Service's campaign to have it axed. See here: catholicunion.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Catholic-Schools-admission-debate-30-Apr-2014.pdf

Aw crap notjust although I think that was on the cards anyway.

I did have a bit of a start earlier when I read the news and thought Damian Green was the new education secretary. possibly a step too far even for Toby Young-promoter May!

What is wrong with having Catholic schools !

Please let successful schools just continue, whether they select or don't.
I have absolutely no problem with faith schools especially as they tend to be the best schools.

The Catholic Church is throwing its weight around and demanding that education policy be changed to suit its agenda. It is holding back money and resources to get its way.

That’s the problem here.

mountford there's nothing wrong with having Catholic schools, but here's a lot wrong with having admissions rules that discriminate against people on the grounds of faith. But suggest you go to the thread on that topic rather than debating it here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/secondary/3090184-50-cap-on-faith-admissions-time-to-write-to-your-MP-if-you-think-it-should-stay

There is nothing wrong with Catholic schools. But if they want to receive the majority of their funding from the state then they should at least even up the admissions process. If they refuse to do that then they shouldn’t be allowed to open more schools.

And I say that as a practicing Catholic.

“Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable said Ms Greening had been "pushed out", adding: "The only rational explanation would be that this is an acknowledgement that the Conservatives have a failed schools policy."”

From the BBC.
But the schools funding crisis and the grammar school debacle weren’t her fault! Well clearly she is majorly pissed off at having to handle all that shite only to be offered a demotion. No wonder she told them where to stick Work and Pensions.

This is symptommatic of everything that’s wrong with English education isn’t it?

We have an education secretary who seemed to be gaining the trust of school leaders, a change in Ofsted which meant a similar thing was happening there and then then the whole thing gets booted into the long grass because it doesn’t fit the PMs vision or appeal to the people she’s trying to keep on side.

It does make you want to bang your head against a wall repeatedly.

Unsurprisingly Damian Hinds is listed as one of these "Friends of Grammar Schools": conservativehome.blogs.com/gazette/2010/10/michael-gove-attends-graham-bradys-friends-of-grammar-schools-parliamentary-reception.html

His voting record is very pro academies so that might potentially kick up a gear.

Voting record...
www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/24782/damian_hinds/east_hampshire/votes

I'm quite gutted, I'd taken quite a liking to Justin Greening, she actually seemed to be listening to teachers, first one in quite some time.

*Justine

Sorry to see a pro faith school pro grammar schools MP put in charge. I want a good school for every area for all kids. Why should kids be denied the chance to go to a good school near home just because they have no faith or didnt do well in an exam on one day when they were 10 years old? And i say this as an ex grammar school pupil

St Ambrose is one of those 'private in all but name' grammars so he wouldn't even be a return to the bollocks ideal past where grammars were a route out of poverty. And I'm a practising catholic too, but I don't think that any school should be allowed to discriminate on grounds of religion. Shutting the door to 'outsiders' is hardly inclusive and all about caring is it? Such separatism is hardly conducive to a coherent and happy society.

I have absolutely no problem with faith schools especially as they tend to be the best schools

only because they are highly selective - any school can be good if it cherry-picks its pupils. I am against a child being excluded from a school down the road because of the religion their parents claim to be. Faith schools should not be allowed. At all. But that's another thread.

Iprefer, many might agree but they are allowed and, for various historical reasons discussed in the other thread, they're not going anywhere. The best we could have hoped for in the short term was a more level playing field on admissions, though Theresa May is intent on dashing those hopes, and the Catholic Education Service has been lobbying hard.

This just sums up Theresa May all over. Nothing wrong with a politicain having an overriding passion for say, social mobility - that's good. Instead she has her one fixation - grammar schools - and continues to pursue this even though she can't give us a good, evidence based reason for doing so. This is how she messed up the 2017 election (well, as far as she was concerned) by her blind stubborness and adherence to her own prejudices. I actually dislike her more than Thatcher.