# Shadow Secretary of State for Education

The shadow secretary of state for education, also called the shadow education secretary, is an office in the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet responsible for Opposition policy on education and for holding the secretary of state for education, junior education ministers, and the Department for Education to account.

## List of shadow secretaries of state

Shadow Secretaries of State for Education and Science :
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | Roy Hattersley | | 4 May 1973 | 5 March 1974 | Labour | Wilson II |
| | Norman St John-Stevas | | 28 February 1974 | 6 November 1978 | Conservative | Thatcher |
| | Mark Carlisle | | 6 November 1978 | 4 May 1979 | Conservative | Thatcher |
| | Gordon Oakes | | 4 May 1979 | 14 July 1979 | Labour | Callaghan |
| | Neil Kinnock | | 14 July 1979 | 2 October 1983 | Labour | Callaghan |
| | Neil Kinnock | | 14 July 1979 | 2 October 1983 | Labour | Foot |
| | Giles Radice | | 2 October 1983 | 13 July 1987 | Labour | Kinnock |
| | Jack Straw | | 13 July 1987 | 18 July 1992 | Labour | Kinnock |
| Shadow Secretaries of State for Education |||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | Ann Taylor | | 18 July 1992 | 20 October 1994 | Labour | Smith |
| | Ann Taylor | | 18 July 1992 | 20 October 1994 | Labour | Beckett |
| | David Blunkett | | 20 October 1994 | 19 October 1995 | Labour | Blair |
| Shadow Secretaries of State for Education and Employment |||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political Party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | David Blunkett | | 19 October 1995 | 2 May 1997 | Labour | Blair |
| | Gillian Shephard | | 2 May 1997 | 11 June 1997 | Conservative | Major |
| | Stephen Dorrell | | 11 June 1997 | 15 June 1998 | Conservative | Hague |
| | David Willetts | | 1 June 1998 | 15 June 1999 | Conservative | Hague |
| | Theresa May | | 15 June 1999 | 18 September 2001 | Conservative | Hague |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills |||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | Damian Green | | 18 September 2001 | 11 November 2003 | Conservative | Duncan Smith |
| | Tim Yeo | | 11 November 2003 | 14 July 2004 | Conservative | Howard |
| | Tim Collins | | 14 July 2004 | 5 May 2005 | Conservative | Howard |
| | David Cameron | | 10 May 2005 | 6 December 2005 | Conservative | Howard |
| | David Willetts | | 8 December 2005 | 3 July 2007 | Conservative | Cameron |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families |||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | Michael Gove | | 3 July 2007 | 6 May 2010 | Conservative | Cameron |
| Shadow Secretaries of State for Education |||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| | Ed Balls | | 12 May 2010 | 8 October 2010 | Labour | Harman I |
| | Andy Burnham | | 8 October 2010 | 7 October 2011 | Labour | Miliband |
| | Stephen Twigg | | 7 October 2011 | 7 October 2013 | Labour | Miliband |
| | Tristram Hunt | | 7 October 2013 | 14 September 2015 | Labour | Miliband |
| | Tristram Hunt | | 7 October 2013 | 14 September 2015 | Labour | Harman II |
| | Lucy Powell | | 14 September 2015 | 26 June 2016 | Labour | Corbyn |
| | Pat Glass | | 27 June 2016 | 29 June 2016 | Labour | Corbyn |
| | Angela Rayner | | 1 July 2016 | 5 April 2020 | Labour | Corbyn |
| | Rebecca Long-Bailey | | 6 April 2020 | 25 June 2020 | Labour | Starmer |
| | Kate Green | | 27 June 2020 | 29 November 2021 | Labour | Starmer |
| | Bridget Phillipson | | 29 November 2021 | 5 July 2024 | Labour | Starmer |
| | Damian Hinds | | 8 July 2024 | 4 November 2024 | Conservative | Sunak |
| | Laura Trott | | 4 November 2024 | Incumbent | Conservative | Badenoch |