By Nick Lester Chief Lords Reporter,Sion Morgan

Copyright walesonline

Education reforms proposed by the Government threaten to take schools back to the “dark days” of decline, a leading expert has warned. Pointing out academies were a Labour invention under Sir Tony Blair, Lord Sewell of Sanderstead urged the current administration “not to tinker with their own success”. The Conservative peer raised his concerns as the House of Lords continued its detailed scrutiny of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. The wide-ranging legislation would curb the freedoms of independent state-funded academy schools, including a requirement to follow the national curriculum. They would also lose the ability to set their own pay and conditions for staff, while teachers would need to have – or be in the process of achieving – qualified teacher status (QTS). Lord Sewell worked for many years in some of London’s most challenging schools and helped with the transformation of education in Hackney as part of a team that spawned the academy movement. The international education consultant also founded the Generating Genius charity, which helps young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to study science and technology at top universities. Highlighting the dramatic success in turning around education in Hackney, Lord Sewell said: “How did we do this? It was because of a number of factors that are in danger from this schools Bill.” He added: “For me, the big difference was that we gave schools autonomy on the curriculum, discipline, hiring of staff and allocation of funding. These were key elements which drove that success. One of the things bringing us up into the highest levels of educational outcomes was that drive. “The proposal to remove automatic academisation for underperforming schools and replace it with something else is problematic. “My concern is that we would probably be going back to those really dark days when schools, particularly in London, were going backwards.” Lord Sewell went on: “I urge the Government not to tinker with their own success.” Fellow Conservative peer Baroness Evans of Bowes Park branded the proposed academy changes “a retrograde step”. She said: “I do not believe this is the right approach. Our education system as a whole has benefited from the ability of teachers to be creative, to innovate and to adapt their curriculum to respond to the unique needs of their pupils.” Independent crossbencher Lord Carter of Haslemere, a former top legal adviser to successive prime ministers, said: “Academies’ proven success has been based on their freedom to depart from the national curriculum and to apply a curriculum tailored to their pupils’ needs. “This Bill, however, is making a far-reaching change to the way that academies work, because the Government will, in future, be able to control the content and application of the national curriculum to academies.” Education minister Baroness Smith of Malvern said: “An up-to-date, knowledge-rich curriculum is key to ensuring high and rising standards in schools, setting a clear minimum expectation of breadth for pupils.” She added: “In this legislation, we are talking about the basic and appropriate requirements for a vast and growing majority of our schools. I have to say, a national curriculum that applies to a dwindling minority of schools is not a national curriculum. “This requirement provides a floor, but no ceiling. It will not force schools to teach in a certain way or prevent them innovating. Teachers will continue to have the flexibility to adapt to best meet the needs of their pupils.”