Anne-Marie Trevelyan, MP for Berwick-upon-Tweed held an education debate on the floor of the House of Commons to put ideas forward for education in north Northumberland.
Education in rural areas has long been an issue of importance for people in north Northumberland and in the debate Anne-Marie put to the Minister education proposals that included innovative solutions to transport issues and a new, bold vision for education provision called Academisation plus.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan said “Provision of education in north Northumberland has long been a concern of mine and the constituents that live in the area. For too long, the previous Labour council allowed funding to only be concentrated in urban areas, whilst allowing ever greater challenges to heap on to our rural schools. The new Conservative administration in County Hall is now working with me to find innovative and bold solutions to ensure that children regardless of where they live and their means, can access good, reliable transport, high quality education resources and teachers that can be leaders.”
“Young people are the future of our nation and deserve to be equipped with the very best education and tools to allow them to fulfil their dreams and ambitions. That is why I put forward a new vision for education in our county, and I want to see an educational leadership framework that gives each and every one of my schools the nudge that they need to rise to the educational challenges ahead by supporting them with a coherent educational framework of which everyone is a part. I look forward to working with the Government and the Minister to allow our children to build on their aspiration and flourish”.
The Minister for Schools Nick Gibb responded by commending the debate and saying “I know she cares passionately about education in general and the schools in her constituency in particular, so it is a pleasure to be discussing these issues with her this morning—as I realise it now is.”
The Minister also committed to working with Anne-Marie and the council to look at proposals put forward by saying “The Secretary of State has recently undertaken to review our guidance on home to school transport and I will ensure that this correctly reflects the flexibilities that local authorities have in providing it. I would be interested to hear more about Northumberland County Council’s proposals so that we can consider them in more detail.”
Read the full speech here