Meeting of the Parliament 27 January 2016
I do not have the time—I apologise.
However, a recent YouGov survey of teachers in England found that less than half of teachers believe that the pupil premium has been effective. Indeed, 4 per cent of teachers said that they thought that the policy had had a negative impact on disadvantaged pupils. Furthermore, the report last year by the National Audit Office suggested that any reduction in the attainment gap as a result of the pupil premium has been marginal at best. I quote directly from the report:
“While the attainment gap has narrowed since 2011, it remains wide and, at this stage, the significance of the improvements is unclear.”
That is hardly a rousing endorsement of the pupil premium policy that the Lib Dems advocate.
Removing barriers to educational attainment is a challenging but important undertaking. The OECD report in December underlined many of the successes in our education system, highlighting clear upward trends in recent years in areas such as attainment and positive school-leaver destinations. However, the OECD review group highlighted a number of challenges, and there is undoubtedly much more work to do to ensure that our education system delivers for every child in Scotland.
I believe that a good-quality education is key to ensuring that children from disadvantaged backgrounds have a ladder of opportunity to escape the poverty trap. I therefore welcome the Scottish Government’s determination to further strengthen Scotland’s education sector and to ensure that our young people leave school with the education and the skills that they need to fulfil their potential.