Agenda item

6.1

It was moved by Councillor Mohammed Mahroof, and seconded by Councillor Mike Levery, that this Council:-

(a)       welcomes that in the most recent OFSTED reports, more than two thirds of secondary schools in Sheffield are rated as outstanding or good;

(b)       believes this is due to the dedication that staff, young people and their families have put into the education of young people in Sheffield;

(c)        however, notes that there are a number of schools still underperforming and are rated as requiring improvement or inadequate or are in special measures;

(d)       notes these schools are Forge Valley, Chaucer, Yewlands, Ecclesfield, Stocksbridge, Bradfield, Westfield, Birley, Outwood and Sheffield Springs;

(e)       further notes that out of these underperforming schools, six are clustered in the same area in the North of Sheffield and four are clustered in the same area in the South/South East of Sheffield, limiting the choice and availability to young people in these particular areas;

(f)        notes that in the North this is approximately 6,700 young people and in the South it is approximately 4,000 young people, amounting to 32% of young people in this city attending a school which is underperforming;

(g)       notes this is not good for the future prosperity of our city, or the life chances of the young people attending these schools; and

(h)       calls on the Cabinet Member for Education and Skills and Learn Sheffield to meet with the academy trusts operating these schools and work with them to develop a plan to improve these schools in the North and South/South East and other schools in similar circumstances across the city.

6.2

Whereupon, it was moved by Councillor Jayne Dunn, and seconded by Councillor Mike Drabble, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the deletion of paragraphs (d) to (h) and the addition of new paragraphs (d) to (p) as follows:-

(d)       believes that despite improvements being required in some of the city’s schools, these results are a testament to the hard work of teachers, leaders and the communities they serve, throughout the city and that, increasingly, schools are working in partnership with one another and Learn Sheffield, resulting in substantial progress being made over the last few years;

(e)       believes, however, that Sheffield schools only succeed in spite of, and not because of, this Government, as they are in desperate need of improved funding -  and this is reflected in the results of the Ofsted report, and the fact that Sheffield schools would be over £18 million better off if the Government had listened to our demands to speed-up the implementation of the new funding formula;

(f)        notes that, under these budgetary constraints, some schools are falling short of what we, or Ofsted, would expect, and we will continue to do everything we can to work with these schools to deliver the required improvements, and we will continue to demand that Government give more to local schools to deliver the right education for every child across the city;

(g)       notes that from 1997 to 2010, Labour Governments increased spending on education as a proportion of GDP from 4.5% to 6.2%, and that the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) estimates that real terms expenditure increased by 4.2% every year, compared with an average increase of just 1.5% from the Conservative Governments of 1979 to 1997;

(h)       further notes that Labour made education a top priority and that average government spending reflected this from 1997-2010:-

(i)         every year, capital spending on schools increased by 12.9%;

(ii)        every year, further education spending increased 7.7%;

(iii)       every year, under-5s spending increased by 6.1%;

(iv)       every year, day-to-day secondary school spending increased by 5%; and

(v)        the average growth in day-to-day primary school spending was at least 3.9% every year;

(i)         further notes that the increases in spending translated into larger numbers of teachers and declining class sizes, with the number of teachers increasing by 12% over the period, from 400,000 to 450,000, as well as a huge increase in the number of support staff and teaching assistants whose numbers tripled to 190,000 by 2010;

(j)         notes that this is in stark contrast to government spending from 2010 and the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition over which point, according to the IFS, the amount of per pupil spending in England’s schools has fallen by 8%, and record numbers of teachers have left the profession;

(k)        further notes that recent studies show that Sixth form funding has been cut by 25% and local authority support is down by 55%;

(l)         finds it remarkable that the largest opposition group have chosen to single out underperforming schools in Sheffield instead of laying blame where it should be; with the Government’s completely inadequate funding;

(m)      regrets that the main opposition group have nothing constructive to say for improving the situation of schools in Sheffield and have instead only asked the Administration to do what it is already doing – working closely with the academy trusts operating underperforming schools and actively offering what support we can, alongside Learn Sheffield;

(n)       notes that this Administration puts fairness and tackling inequality at the heart of all policies - actively investing more in the areas of greatest need and readdressing geographical disparities in the city, and yet efforts to do so are often opposed by the leading opposition group;

(o)       believes we need a Labour government to ensure local authorities can build schools again and scrap the free school programme, a flagship initiative of the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, MP when he was Secretary of State for Education under the coalition government, bring academies under greater democratic control and bring to an end the Conservative-Liberal Democrat legacy of fragmentation and privatisation of the education sector; and

(p)       further notes that a Labour government would stop schools being able to operate their own admission policies, as the current situation has left local authorities with a duty to ensure that every school age child gets a school place, yet are not always able to place children where they want, although in Sheffield we continue to perform much better than the national average, with 97% of children given a place at a secondary school of their choice.

6.2.1

(NOTE: With the agreement of the Council and at the request of the mover of the amendment (Councillor Jayne Dunn), the amendment as circulated at the meeting and published with the agenda, was altered by the deletion of the words “every year” from the 4^th line in paragraph (j).)

6.3

It was then moved by Councillor Alison Teal, and seconded by Councillor Douglas Johnson, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the deletion of paragraph (b) and the substitution of a new paragraph (b) as follows:-

(b)       gives credit to the dedication that staff, young people and their families put into the education of young people in Sheffield, but notes that the quality of a child’s education in Sheffield still depends too much on where they were born and where they live.

6.4

It was then moved by Councillor Colin Ross, and seconded by Councillor Andrew Sangar, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the addition of new paragraphs (i) to (o) as follows:-

(i)         notes that a Labour government established academies through the Learning and Skills Act 2000 and aimed to "improve pupil performance and break the cycle of low expectations” by directly funding schools through central government and giving more freedom and choice to schools to choose their own term times, curriculum and staff;

(j)         notes that more than half of the biggest multi-academy trusts (MATs) have issued warnings in 2018 about funding, citing pay, staffing levels, building maintenance and mounting deficits, and some are relying on emergency handouts from the taxpayer;

(k)        notes that many have failed to improve after being converted into academy schools and a number have been adversely affected by the ineffectiveness of the MAT they are under;

(l)         notes that Regional Schools Commissioners do not have the powers or policy framework to influence the development of MATs;

(m)      believes MATs should undergo external inspection, with those failing to improve standards re-brokered by local authorities;

(n)       believes that measures should be introduced to prevent MATs using education funding to pay excessive executive salaries; and

(o)       believes local authorities should have a significant role, with the remit to promote high standards across the state school sector, including academies.

6.5

After contributions from three other Members, and following a right of reply from Councillor Mohammed Mahroof, the amendment moved by Councillor Jayne Dunn, as altered at the meeting, was put to the vote and was carried.

6.6

The amendment moved by Councillor Alison Teal was then put to the vote and was also carried.

6.7

The amendment moved by Councillor Colin Ross was then put to the vote and was negatived.

6.8

The original Motion, as amended, was then put as a Substantive Motion in the following form and carried:-

RESOLVED: That this Council:-

(a)       welcomes that in the most recent OFSTED reports, more than two thirds of secondary schools in Sheffield are rated as outstanding or good;

(b)       gives credit to the dedication that staff, young people and their families put into the education of young people in Sheffield, but notes that the quality of a child’s education in Sheffield still depends too much on where they were born and where they live;

(c)        however, notes that there are a number of schools still underperforming and are rated as requiring improvement or inadequate or are in special measures;

(d)       believes that despite improvements being required in some of the city’s schools, these results are a testament to the hard work of teachers, leaders and the communities they serve, throughout the city and that, increasingly, schools are working in partnership with one another and Learn Sheffield, resulting in substantial progress being made over the last few years;

(e)       believes, however, that Sheffield schools only succeed in spite of, and not because of, this Government, as they are in desperate need of improved funding -  and this is reflected in the results of the Ofsted report, and the fact that Sheffield schools would be over £18 million better off if the Government had listened to our demands to speed-up the implementation of the new funding formula;

(f)        notes that, under these budgetary constraints, some schools are falling short of what we, or Ofsted, would expect, and we will continue to do everything we can to work with these schools to deliver the required improvements, and we will continue to demand that Government give more to local schools to deliver the right education for every child across the city;

(g)       notes that from 1997 to 2010, Labour Governments increased spending on education as a proportion of GDP from 4.5% to 6.2%, and that the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) estimates that real terms expenditure increased by 4.2% every year, compared with an average increase of just 1.5% from the Conservative Governments of 1979 to 1997;

(h)       further notes that Labour made education a top priority and that average government spending reflected this from 1997-2010:-

(i)         every year, capital spending on schools increased by 12.9%;

(ii)        every year, further education spending increased 7.7%;

(iii)       every year, under-5s spending increased by 6.1%;

(iv)       every year, day-to-day secondary school spending increased by 5%; and

(v)        the average growth in day-to-day primary school spending was at least 3.9% every year;

(i)         further notes that the increases in spending translated into larger numbers of teachers and declining class sizes, with the number of teachers increasing by 12% over the period, from 400,000 to 450,000, as well as a huge increase in the number of support staff and teaching assistants whose numbers tripled to 190,000 by 2010;

(j)         notes that this is in stark contrast to government spending from 2010 and the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition over which point, according to the IFS, the amount of per pupil spending in England’s schools has fallen by 8%, and record numbers of teachers have left the profession;

(k)        further notes that recent studies show that Sixth form funding has been cut by 25% and local authority support is down by 55%;

(l)         finds it remarkable that the largest opposition group have chosen to single out underperforming schools in Sheffield instead of laying blame where it should be; with the Government’s completely inadequate funding;

(m)      regrets that the main opposition group have nothing constructive to say for improving the situation of schools in Sheffield and have instead only asked the Administration to do what it is already doing – working closely with the academy trusts operating underperforming schools and actively offering what support we can, alongside Learn Sheffield;

(n)       notes that this Administration puts fairness and tackling inequality at the heart of all policies - actively investing more in the areas of greatest need and readdressing geographical disparities in the city, and yet efforts to do so are often opposed by the leading opposition group;

(o)       believes we need a Labour government to ensure local authorities can build schools again and scrap the free school programme, a flagship initiative of the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, MP when he was Secretary of State for Education under the coalition government, bring academies under greater democratic control and bring to an end the Conservative-Liberal Democrat legacy of fragmentation and privatisation of the education sector; and

(p)       further notes that a Labour government would stop schools being able to operate their own admission policies, as the current situation has left local authorities with a duty to ensure that every school age child gets a school place, yet are not always able to place children where they want, although in Sheffield we continue to perform much better than the national average, with 97% of children given a place at a secondary school of their choice.

6.8.1

The votes on the Substantive Motion were ordered to be recorded and were as follows:-

For paragraphs (a) to (c) (69)

-

The Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Tony Downing) and Councillors Simon Clement-Jones, Bob Pullin, Richard Shaw, Chris Rosling-Josephs, Ian Saunders, Sophie Wilson, Denise Fox, Bryan Lodge, Karen McGowan, Michelle Cook, Kaltum Rivers, Jackie Drayton, Talib Hussain, Douglas Johnson, Robert Murphy, Martin Phipps, Adam Hanrahan, Mohammed Mahroof, Anne Murphy, Mazher Iqbal, Mary Lea, Zahira Naz, Joe Otten, Colin Ross, Martin Smith, Andy Bainbridge, Moya O’Rourke, Roger Davison, Shaffaq Mohammed, Paul Scriven, Abdul Khayum, Abtisam Mohamed, Sue Alston, Andrew Sangar, Cliff Woodcraft, Lewis Dagnall, Cate McDonald, Chris Peace, Ian Auckland, Sue Auckland, Steve Ayris, Bob Johnson, George Lindars-Hammond, Josie Paszek, Lisa Banes, Pat Midgley, David Barker, Gail Smith, Mohammad Maroof, Jim Steinke, Alison Teal, Julie Dore, Jack Scott, Mike Drabble, Dianne Hurst, Peter Rippon, Dawn Dale, Peter Price, Mike Chaplin, Jayne Dunn, Penny Baker, Vickie Priestley, Francyne Johnson, Olivia Blake, Adam Hurst, Mike Levery, Mick Rooney and Jackie Satur.

Against paragraphs (a) to (c) (2)

-

Councillors Jack Clarkson and Keith Davis.

Abstained from voting on paragraphs (a) to (c) (1)

-

The Lord Mayor (Councillor Magid Magid).

For paragraphs (d) to (f) (64)

-

The Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Tony Downing) and Councillors Simon Clement-Jones, Bob Pullin, Richard Shaw, Chris Rosling-Josephs, Ian Saunders, Sophie Wilson, Denise Fox, Bryan Lodge, Karen McGowan, Michelle Cook, Jackie Drayton, Talib Hussain, Adam Hanrahan, Mohammed Mahroof, Anne Murphy, Mazher Iqbal, Mary Lea, Zahira Naz, Joe Otten, Colin Ross, Martin Smith, Andy Bainbridge, Moya O’Rourke, Roger Davison, Shaffaq Mohammed, Paul Scriven, Abdul Khayum, Abtisam Mohamed, Sue Alston, Andrew Sangar, Cliff Woodcraft, Lewis Dagnall, Cate McDonald, Chris Peace, Ian Auckland, Sue Auckland, Steve Ayris, Bob Johnson, George Lindars-Hammond, Josie Paszek, Lisa Banes, Pat Midgley, David Barker, Gail Smith, Mohammad Maroof, Jim Steinke, Julie Dore, Jack Scott, Mike Drabble, Dianne Hurst, Peter Rippon, Dawn Dale, Peter Price, Mike Chaplin, Jayne Dunn, Penny Baker, Vickie Priestley, Francyne Johnson, Olivia Blake, Adam Hurst, Mike Levery, Mick Rooney and Jackie Satur.

Against paragraphs (d) to (f) (2)

-

Councillors Jack Clarkson and Keith Davis.

Abstained from voting on paragraphs (d) to (f) (6)

-

The Lord Mayor (Councillor Magid Magid) and Councillors Kaltum Rivers, Douglas Johnson, Robert Murphy, Martin Phipps and Alison Teal.

For paragraphs (g) to (p) (43)

-

The Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Tony Downing) and Councillors Chris Rosling-Josephs, Ian Saunders, Sophie Wilson, Denise Fox, Bryan Lodge, Karen McGowan, Michelle Cook, Jackie Drayton, Talib Hussain, Anne Murphy, Mazher Iqbal, Mary Lea, Zahira Naz, Andy Bainbridge, Moya O’Rourke, Abdul Khayum, Abtisam Mohamed, Lewis Dagnall, Cate McDonald, Chris Peace, Bob Johnson, George Lindars-Hammond, Josie Paszek, Lisa Banes, Pat Midgley, David Barker, Mohammad Maroof, Jim Steinke, Julie Dore, Jack Scott, Mike Drabble, Dianne Hurst, Peter Rippon, Dawn Dale, Peter Price, Mike Chaplin, Jayne Dunn, Francyne Johnson, Olivia Blake, Adam Hurst, Mick Rooney and Jackie Satur.

Against paragraphs (g) to (p) (23)

-

Councillors Simon Clement-Jones, Bob Pullin, Richard Shaw, Adam Hanrahan, Mohammed Mahroof, Joe Otten, Colin Ross, Martin Smith, Roger Davison, Shaffaq Mohammed, Paul Scriven, Sue Alston, Andrew Sangar, Cliff Woodcraft, Ian Auckland, Sue Auckland, Steve Ayris, Gail Smith, Penny Baker, Vickie Priestley, Jack Clarkson, Keith Davis and Mike Levery.

Abstained from voting on paragraphs (g) to (p) (6)

-

The Lord Mayor (Councillor Magid Magid) and Councillors Kaltum Rivers, Douglas Johnson, Robert Murphy, Martin Phipps and Alison Teal.

6.8.2

(NOTE: Councillor Ben Miskell, having declared a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in this item, did not speak or vote on the item.)