Responding to the opponents of “Swedish schools”

Given how potentially transformative the Tory schools policy could be, it’s surprising it hasn’t attracted more enemies. But in school policy, silence is deceptive. The enemies of reform tend to operate under the radar. Local authorities, whose grip over state education is threatened, will lobby their local MP. It’s crucial to understand here that Tory councils are just as bad. They fought Kenneth Baker’s plans for direct grant (i.e. quasi-independent) schools with as much energy as Labour councils did. And already, you can hear Tory MPs voicing questions about the Gove “Swedish schools” policy – and they join a harder Labour critique. I thought I’d run through a few here.

1.    That Sweden is a tiny country with very different dynamics, and what works in Scandi wonderland won’t work in Sunderland. The Swedish school policy was carried out at a grassroots level, not a local or national level. The state simply gave communities the right to set up a new school with minimum restrictions – and, at the time, didn’t think anyone would really do it.