Education Secretary's speech at the ASCL conference
Source: gov.uk (2025-03-14)

The Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, speech at the Association of School and College Leaders.

Good morning, everyone. Thank you so much for inviting me to speak.

It’s good to be here. To talk to ASCL members once again.

Continuing a conversation that has stretched over many years, during my time in opposition, and now as Secretary of State for Education,

I value your voice and your views. When we agree, of course…

But even when we don’t. I welcome those robust conversations.

And Manny, that was certainly robust.

And I welcome that challenge because I know you and your members want what I want, what parents want, what this government wants, what the Prime Minister wants, what the people of this country want:

Better life chances for all of our children and young people.

And through the headwinds and turbulence, the disruption and distraction, this is a government that will face down challenges and focus on outcomes for children.

And I know that’s what you want too, Pepe.

It’s been a year of change for both of us since we met at this conference last March.

Because, just as this is your first ASCL Conference as General Secretary, it’s my first as Secretary of State.

I did warn you last year that might happen.

And when I spoke here last year, I told you what I’d do.

I made promises to deliver change for children, and [political content removed] that’s exactly what I’ve done.

That’s where my focus lies, delivering change for them – not playing politics or jumping on passing bandwagons or indulging the commentariat.

I promised to move quickly on an expert-led Curriculum and Assessment Review – and it’s already in full swing.

I promised a register of children not in school – we’re already legislating for that.

I promised a single unique identifier for our children – we’re already legislating for that too.

I promised a free breakfast club in every primary school – we’re already starting to roll them out.

Promises made, promises kept. With funding. Tripling investment in breakfast clubs.

On average a school switching to our early adopter breakfast club programme would get £21,400 more funding than under the last scheme.

And much of our vital action is delivered by the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.

That bill belongs to children. To keep them safe, to raise standards in their schools, and to save their parents money.

And a lot of the change we are delivering, doesn’t need legislation:

the biggest ever boost to Early Years Pupil Premium,

new flexibility for teachers to take planning time remotely,

new T-level qualifications.

We are getting on and delivering. That’s what families expect of a responsible government, not more words, action that makes a genuine difference in their lives, right now.

And Education is a driving force for change.

That’s why, despite the toughest financial inheritance in a generation, the Chancellor protected key education priorities at the Budget.

£8 billion for early years.

A 5.5% pay award for schoolteachers.

But I know we’ve had to make some incredibly difficult decisions already, and I’m afraid to say more are coming.

I have to be blunt about our inheritance as a government, not just fiscally, but on the fabric of education too.

You know this all too well, you see it every day.

Children turning up still in nappies, not able to speak, absences stubbornly high, vacancies up, the SEND system creaking after years of neglect.

The destruction in the social fabric that wraps around our children cannot be fixed overnight.

[Political content removed]

But together we’re making progress. Building long-term solutions to generational challenges. Rejecting the shiny appeal of quick fixes. Promoting the life chances of this country’s children.

And I know that you’re all doing the same. Your leadership has never mattered more – with all of the challenges we face.

You’ve risen to the occasion before. And Monday will mark the 5-year anniversary of the disruption to schools by Covid.

You stepped up then. You did incredible things for our children. and I need you to step up again – but this time, government will be right at your side.

Despite the challenges, I am hopeful. I believe this country’s best days lie ahead of us.

There are so many examples of excellence in countless colleges and schools. But together we need to go further, so that every child gets the best education.

That’s at the centre of my vision.

To break down barriers to opportunity for every child.

And it has to be for every child.

It’s never enough for a just lucky few bright children from deprived backgrounds to succeed.

I went to fantastic schools; I had teachers who believed in me, a family who prized learning.

I was given the opportunities to achieve. For me, background wasn’t destiny, but for too many of the kids on my street, it was. I saw the bad luck of a tough start weigh down their life chances.

And now I want opportunity for every child, and for that we need high and rising standards in every school.

I know that’s a phrase you’ve heard a few times from me before.

And I say it because it matters. Because standards drive life chances.

And it means four things. And it starts with you. Teachers, leaders.

You make such a difference in the lives of children.

We’re working to get 6,500 more teachers across schools and colleges, to keep the great ones we’ve already got, and for all teachers to at least be progressing towards qualified teacher status.

That’s the first step. The next is what you teach. The curriculum.

And we need a core curriculum in all schools, one that builds on the past, but is fit for the future, rich in knowledge, broad and deep, cutting-edge, guided by the curriculum and assessment review, chaired by Professor Becky Francis – and she’ll be here tomorrow to tell you more about it.

But to benefit, children need to be in the classroom and ready to learn. So high and rising standards means breaking down the barriers to learning too.

Tackling our absence crisis, supporting our children with special educational needs.

The final piece of the standards puzzle is structures and accountability.

How we drive improvement, how we as government and you as leaders work together to deliver better life chances for children.

So let’s talk about improvement, about accountability.

Because I know the proposed changes are challenging. I know they’ve sparked debate. But that’s right where education should be, at the heart of our national conversation.

That’s why we are consulting on this, why Ofsted are consulting on their proposals to improve inspection.

They are genuine consultations. We need to hear from young people and parents, teachers and leaders. Because you understand our shared responsibility. The leaders in my schools did too.

I remember one day I was passed a note during a lesson,

And it called me to the Deputy Head’s office. Now Mr Hurst could be fierce, believe you me. And getting summoned out of the blue put the fear of God into me. And when I got there, he told me to sit down.

He told me he’d seen the list of pupils applying to visit Oxford and Cambridge that year – and that my name was nowhere to be seen.

He told me to get that right by the end of the day. And then he sent me on my way.

As teachers and leaders, you play those pivotal moments, when futures tip one way or the other. I only had one childhood, one chance to succeed.

Where would I be now without those 2 minutes in Mr Hurst’s office?

No child gets a second chance at childhood.

We owe them that relentless pursuit of better. From stuck to good, good to great, great schools sharing their excellence.

And strong and effective accountability will be at the heart of how we drive change for children.

And the way we deliver improvement is changing too.

Smarter, more diagnostic, more targeted. A system that challenges but provides support too. So that when we identify problems, schools aren’t left out in the cold to solve them alone.

Backed by swift action. Action in the 600 schools that are stuck – receiving consecutive poor Ofsted judgements.

For the 300,000 children who go to those schools. That’s who these changes are for. Those children.

And the spark of improvement in their schools and in their lives – that comes from leadership.

I’ve seen it in my own constituency, especially during the pandemic. Strong groups of schools where leaders could share evidence, generate ideas, improve life chances by working together.

And our new RISE teams share that spirit. Taking what’s best in schools and trusts and spreading it, so that all children can benefit.

Improvement of schools, by schools, for children– with government there to challenge and support you.

Where performance in schools isn’t good enough, RISE teams will be there with targeted interventions. Intensive, mandatory support, backed by investment, guided by top leaders, from top schools and top trusts.

Added to that, our universal RISE service, a new offer of support for continuous improvement in all our schools, spreading best practice.

Following four national priorities.

One is attainment, with a focus on English and Maths.

It’s not a nice-to-have. Good for some children but fine for others to miss out.

No. All children need that firm foundation of attainment.

That’s why the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change sets attainment as a key milestone.

We’re investing in reading at key stages 2 and 3, building up phonics to fluency and we’ll be publishing our new Writing Framework for schools later this year.

We’ll drive progress across the board, but especially for kids from tough backgrounds.

And that progress must start early in life – when the possibilities still stretch out ahead.

That’s why the Plan for Change also sets the milestone of a record number of children starting school ready to learn.

So the next priority for RISE teams is reception year quality. Joining those two priorities are two more: attendance and inclusion – two urgent barriers to learning our children face.

Unlocking learning for all children is so important.

And as leaders you know it’s your responsibility to set the ethos of your school. To enforce good behaviour and to break down barriers.

And phones are a big one.

As school leaders you all know that so much of the damage caused by smartphones and social media takes place outside the school gates.

The Technology Secretary has commissioned a study led by the University of Cambridge to assess the impact of social media and smartphones, strengthening the evidence base on their impact on children’s well-being

But you know, we all do, that phones are disruptive, distracting, bad for behaviour.

They have no place in our schools. And the government’s position is clear: you have our full backing in ridding our classrooms of the disruption of phones.

And I know that will be the case in the overwhelming majority of your classrooms. But I expect it to be true in all classrooms.

So I have tasked my officials to look at how we can more effectively monitor what’s happening on the ground

Because this is not a government of gimmicks and rhetoric – [political content removed] but a government that will ensure that where words flow, action follows.

Because if we don’t, it’s children who suffer.

And it’s the same for absence. [political content removed]

That challenge was turbocharged, not just by Covid but by no plan for our children’s return.

It wreaked havoc with children’s life chances. You see it in your schools every day. [political content removed]

And our new analysis shows the cost to future life chances. Take teenagers who attend nearly every day of year 11, they are almost twice as likely to get a Grade 5 or above in their English and Maths GCSEs than similar students who miss just 10 more days than them.

The evidence is clear: absence scars life chances.

Every day out of the classroom will cost a child hundreds of pounds in future wages over their lifetime.

No parent wants that for their child.

No school wants that for their pupils.

No government wants that for their country.

One in five children persistently absent from school. 1.6 million missing a day every other week.

That’s the national picture. But it varies – from school to school.

Our data shows that there are schools, facing similar challenges, but with significantly different performance on attendance.

Some doing really well. But others not making enough progress. Not yet learning from the best. And I won’t accept the damage that does to those children.

I expect schools to catch up – fast.

And I know that’s what schools want to do, what you’re all working so hard to do,

The way we turn this around is through collaboration, partnership and, if we’re honest, old-fashioned graft. Shared responsibility too – parents, schools and government.

We’re delivering daily attendance data, so we can identify, interrogate and tackle patterns of absence.

The green shoots are appearing. Especially in our secondary schools. If we keep this up, we’ll achieve one of the biggest annual increases in recent memory.

On attendance and the challenge of behaviour – continuing to work with you to spread best practice.

And the way we drive improvement in schools will focus on attendance too. That’s why one of those four national priorities for our brand-new RISE teams is attendance. And we’re proposing that new school report cards include a focus on attendance too.

We’re hosting 9 major conferences to reach every secondary school in the country – focusing on leadership.

Building networks of schools. Bringing leaders together – to lead the solutions. And I want to thank everyone in this room who has helped and I’m so glad to hear from so many of you that they are working well for you.

We will continue to support and challenge schools on this.

But another barrier to learning that we all know is the failure of the system supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities.

It’s not working how any of us would like. And children aren’t getting the support they need. Children and young people with SEND – along with disadvantaged children – have the most to gain from high and rising standards.

And a classroom that caters to all is a strength. Children thinking in different ways is a gift. It’s time we recognised that. I’ve been told this is too hard, that it can’t be done.

Of course it’s not easy, but it is possible. There are schools and trusts doing it already. I’ve talked to parents, and they tell me how important this is too.

One father told me about his daughter at Becontree Primary School in Dagenham, which has a SEND unit for children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder.

His daughter moving into a mainstream school gave him faith that she will be able to achieve as an adult, get a job, be an active citizen.

It can be done.

King Ecgbert School in Sheffield, part of Mercia Learning Trust.

The school has a 30-place integrated resource unit for autism. Pupils spend most of their time in mainstream lessons, supported by specialist learning assistants.

Inclusion spreads beyond the classroom. Pupils with SEND get the support they need to play sports, to join art clubs, to feature in school plays.

The school focuses not just on support, but on outcomes too.

Attainment is above the local and national average.

All pupils, including those with SEND achieve exceptionally well.

They is proof that the inclusion vs standards compromise is no such thing, they go together. As the schools says, ‘if we get it right for our most vulnerable, then we’ll be getting it right for everyone’.

Their Ofsted report sums it up – ‘these impressive outcomes open doors to opportunity for all children leaving the school’.

And that’s what it’s all about. Opportunity. We need to spread that excellence.

And so I’m glad their headteacher, Paul Haigh, is now one of our new RISE advisers.

This excellence exists and it must become the norm for all of our children.

Action is underway: through our RISE teams, through the Curriculum and Assessment Review, through the £740m of capital investment I announced in December.

But this is a complex and difficult challenge. It will take time. We need to get this right. We’re working with parents, teachers, experts, those with lived experience.

Our Strategic Advisor on SEND, Dame Christine Lenehan is drawing on the wisdom of parents, professionals and leaders.

Tom Rees, who is leading my Expert Advisory Group on Inclusion, is working with ImpactED, and will launch a survey on best practice tomorrow.

Our conversations leave us in no doubt of the scale of the challenge that we face. But I am hopeful. The change we need already exists.

Back in October last year I visited Chantry Academy on the outskirts of Ipswich.

I met a young boy there with special educational needs. He told me that he had always felt too special for a normal school, but not special enough for a special school.

He worried he just didn’t fit in anywhere. Until he joined Chantry Academy.

And thanks to Chantry’s focus on inclusion, that little boy finally feels that he belongs. And speaking to the head teacher, I could see why.

Community is the key – creating a community within the school where everyone is welcome – and connected to the community around them.

Chantry is on an improvement journey. After an inadequate judgement from Ofsted in 2014, they joined Active Learning Trust and changed leadership.

There is still more to do, but the school is seeing tangible progress.

Just two years ago one in three students at Chantry were persistently absent. Now it’s fewer than one in five, back below the national average.

And the share of pupils getting good grades in English and maths at GCSE has nearly doubled since 2019.

I love visiting schools and colleges.

Because it reminds me what’s truly important. What really matters.

It’s the children. Their life chances, their hopes, their futures.

That’s what we’re here to do. That’s who we’re here to serve.

That’s the responsibility of your jobs and of mine.

That hopeful little boy in Ipswich,

those quiet little girls growing up on streets like mine.

But that’s the real privilege too.

Why mine is the best job in government,

Why yours are the source of so much about what’s good in our country.

Because despite the big challenges, the early mornings, the late nights, the tough times, what we do matters.

And I want to thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for all you do.

For the difference you make. I know how hard you work, I know it’s not easy, the work of turning around children’s life chances never will be.

But I want you to know that if we come together now,

to spread what works, to end what doesn’t, to share the spirit of restless improvement.

If we do that, together we have the chance to usher in not just a new era of education, but a brighter future too.

For our children, for our communities, and for our country.