Local authorities won't be ‘written out of the script' in education, says Laws

Speaking at the National Children and Adult Services Conference, David Laws told delegates that the government has no desire to manage schools from Whitehall and “trusts” local authorities to deliver changes to the education system.

He said local authorities have a responsibility to support and coordinate schools at a local level, and intervene where there were problems.

“It makes no sense for these functions to be done at any other level than one between Whitehall and schools,” said Laws.

“Many schools, particularly at secondary level, have decided to seize on the freedoms of academy status. But this does not mean local authorities will be written out of the script.

“I am very clear that, as we set out in the schools white paper in 2010, local authorities have an absolutely crucial role to play.”

Laws cited the fact that councils have been recently given £100m capital funding to create free childcare places for disadvantaged two-year-olds from 2013, as evidence of government’s trust in local authorities.

“We recently decided to give the two-year-old capital funding as a simple transfer,” he said. “We wouldn’t have done that had we not trusted you to spend it effectively.”

Ian Thomas, strategic director for children and younger adults at Derbyshire County Council, said increasing numbers of academies had not weakened the council role in education in his area.

“I’ve never seen our role diminishing anyway,” he said. “Local authorities are key players in educational attainment. We still hold all our schools to account whether they are academies or not and we’re clear we have a role to support schools.”

At a separate conference event, shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg outlined his views on the role of local authorities in education.

“Local government has a major role to play in education as a champion of high standards, as a broker for innovation and school improvements, and as a partner with central government on the commissioning of new schools and the planning of school places,” said Twigg.