The Guardian view on schools: Send reforms aside, the government’s white paper lacks focus | Editorial

The Guardian view on schools: Send reforms aside, the government’s white paper lacks focus Editorial Plans to resurrect the children’s services decimated by austerity are appealing. But schools also need attention H eavily trailed reforms to special educational needs and disabilities education dominated coverage of last week’s schools white paper. But Bridget Phillipson’s policy of in-sourcing special provision, creating a new tier of support and making mainstream settings more inclusive , is the centrepiece of a broader agenda that also requires scrutiny. All schools in future will have to join multi-academy trusts, including a new kind of trust established by councils. Ministers have also promised a drastic shrinking of the attainment gap between richer and poorer pupils, and new projects in north-east England and coastal areas aimed at raising standards. The way that £8bn in disadvantage funding is targeted is also being changed. Other measures include financial incentives for heads in challenging schools, stronger oversight of academy trusts and a clear signal of openness to flexible working arrangements. The case for some of these changes is clearly made. The emphasis on teacher training and recruitment, and recognition of staffing challenges in disadvantaged areas, are welcome. So is tighter scrutiny of trusts , including executive pay. But it is far from obvious that compelling all schools to join trusts will bring about improvement as opposed to disruption. Successive Tory education secretaries made similar plans, only to abandon them when councils, unions and parents objected. Levelling up education has always been Ms Phillipson’s strongest theme . As a Sunderland MP, she has a special interest in boosting outcomes among working-class pupils who lag behind. Rightly, she and her colleagues recognise that this challenge goes beyond schools. They want to rebuild the local services, including youth clubs, children’s centres and grassroots sports facilities, tha...