Guardian live debate: How councils can put schools at the heart of the community
Author: Peter Wilkes, in the Guardian |
Peter Wilkes, researcher for Localis, participated in a Guardian Local Leaders live discussion on how councils can put schools at the heart of their communities.
The debate emphasised the potential for local authorities to play a more active role in education by clarifying their role in it. Embracing this role would allow councils to foster stronger links across communities and bring citizens closer together. Establishing these links is important. For example, it could be a means of bridging the gap between local government and ethnic minorities, and between ethnic minorities and other community groups. With this premise in mind, the live discussion focused upon:
? How can schools become more than just places people go to learn?
? What after-school activities can benefit the whole community?
? What work is going on in this area?
? What more can be done by schools and councils to engage parents in areas of high migrant populations?
Peter emphasised the importance of collaboration to education. This could be collaboration between businesses and schools so that children receive the training they need to be work-ready. It could also be between different schools so that experience and expertise can be better shared. There is certainly scope for local authorities to get involved by optimising children’s education through better regulation. As with so much else in post-recession Britain, the best path forward for education is one that is built upon collaboration, cooperation, and a shared approach towards knowledge and resources.
The other members of the expert panel included:
Mike Harris, councillor in Lewisham and chairs the audit panel.
John Fowler, policy manager at the Local Government Information Unit.
Claudia Megele, senior lecturer and CPD/PQ programme leader at Middlesex University and head of practice, Learning, at Enfield council.
Emma Knights, chief executive of the National Governors Association.
Andrew Grimley, assistant headteacher at Barton Hill Academy.
Pascale Vassie, executive director of the National Resource Centre for Supplementary Education.
John Hitchin, director at the social enterprise Renaisi.
Andy Hollingsworth, senior policy officer at Solace (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives).
James Nettleton, consultant in government services, specialising in education and entrepreneurship programmes, at BDO.