Theresa May spoke for almost half an hour before she actually mentioned the ‘G’ word: Grammar schools. But before she did so, the Prime Minister repeatedly uttered another word nearly a dozen times: meritocracy. May said she wanted Britain to become ‘the great meritocracy of the world’ and she said schools were the place to kick start that change. Her speech was a sometimes-reheated version of her first Downing Street address, but her message was clear: this is a bold shake-up of Britain’s education system.
The PM said grammar schools would be encouraged to grow and she vowed as well to kick over the obstacles in the way of new grammar schools opening. Yet it seems May spent longer justifying her policy than actually clarifying it. Her £50m to help grammar schools expand each year will not go far at all.
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