North West Norfolk MP James Wild on the silver bullet of education
In his weekly column, MP James Wild discusses education...
Education, education, education. As the Prime Minister says, improving education is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet when it comes to making people’s lives better which is why I have focused on this since I was elected MP for North West Norfolk.
Of course, the pandemic led to huge disruption to children’s learning so it is very welcome that pupils across West Norfolk performed so well in the first exams since Covid where grading returned largely to normal. Despite grades overall being lower than last year as a result, GCSE results locally were above pre-pandemic levels.
At Smithdon High School results were 10 per cent above 2019 results. The same was true at St. Clement’s High School where students getting top grades across all subjects was higher than last year. Springwood had 5 per cent more pupils getting a 7 or higher in English and Maths. At KES – where I am a governor – there was a 12 per cent increase in 9-4 grades in those vital subjects.
It was a similar story for A-levels where KES achieved 70 per cent of all grades A*-C. The College of West Anglia rightly celebrated successes including results for T-levels in Health and Social Care. Springwood even had a pupil who won a scholarship to study at Harvard.
This success is down to the hard work of pupils and the principal of King’s Lynn Academy rightly praised the resilience of students after the disruption caused by Covid. As I visit schools in North West Norfolk, I am fortunate to meet brilliant teachers and staff who make such a positive difference to their pupils’ lives and helped them realise their potential in these exams.
One of the issues that I regularly take up on behalf of constituents is support for children with special educational needs. Improving provision for SEND pupils is rightly a priority and government reforms announced earlier this year will help alongside Norfolk County Council’s £100 million Local First programme. As part of this plan, two new schools have just been approved to open that will create 270 specialist education places. One will be based in Downham with 100 places for five to 18-year-olds with communication and interaction needs, creating more places in West Norfolk. Another one will be opened in Great Yarmouth for three to 19-year-olds with complex needs.
These schools will be built and funded through this government’s very successful free school programme which has transformed the lives of young people across the country. The next step is to buy land and secure planning permission and a process will be opened for multi-academy trusts to bid to run the new schools which are aiming to open in September 2026.
As schools return from the summer break, I’ll be continuing my regular visits to hear directly from teachers and pupils and by doing so I can take valuable feedback to ministers to ensure every child has the best chance to realise their potential.