Anthony Seldon, head
of Wellington College, suggests leading private schools should be forced
to reserve a quarter of their places for children from the poorest
families
Rich parents who want to send their children to the highest performing state schools should have to pay up to £20,000 a year, according to a leading private school headmaster and political advisor.
Dr Anthony Seldon, master at Wellington College – which charges students £30,000 a year to board – also argues that top private schools should be forced to reserve a quarter of their places for children from the poorest families.
In a report to be published by the Social Market Foundation on Wednesday, Seldon argues that the controversial move would help to close theunfair gap between the academic achievements and career prospects of the richest and poorest children in the UK, providing state schools with extra funds for more teachers and smaller classes.
"We have to end this unfair farce whereby middle-class parents dominate the best schools, when they could afford to pay, and even boast of their moral superiority in using the state system when all they are doing is squeezing out the poor from the best schools," he told the Sunday Times.
The precedent of paying for state education has already been established in universities, which now charge students £9,000 a year, said Seldon. In his report Seldon calls for all families with an income of more than £80,000 a year to be charged if their child goes to an oversubscribed state school. "The more the parents earn, the more they should pay," he says in the report.
"Grammar schools, popular academies and comprehensives would be the most expensive schools," says Seldon, noting that only 3% of pupils at the country's 166 grammar schools come from the poorest homes.
Seldon calls for the wealthiest parents – those earning more than £200,000 a year – to pay up to £20,000 a year at the most oversubscribed secondary schools and £15,000 for primaries – the same as some private schools. The dramatic move is needed to inject social mobility into an education system that does not do enough to give the poorest children the best chance of high academic achievement, he says, adding that privately educated pupils are much more likely to go to leading universities and work in high-status jobs such as law and medicine.
"Instead of estate agents and private tutors getting rich, let's put this money into the state system," he says. Seldon concludes the report by saying: "Britain will be in debt for many years to come. We should be looking for every possible source of extra funds to come into public services and state schooling is the last great bastion holding out against the principle of payment. It is far more morally repellent to continue with the status quo than to start charging fees at top schools for those who can pay."
Dr Anthony Seldon, master at Wellington College – which charges students £30,000 a year to board – also argues that top private schools should be forced to reserve a quarter of their places for children from the poorest families.
In a report to be published by the Social Market Foundation on Wednesday, Seldon argues that the controversial move would help to close theunfair gap between the academic achievements and career prospects of the richest and poorest children in the UK, providing state schools with extra funds for more teachers and smaller classes.
"We have to end this unfair farce whereby middle-class parents dominate the best schools, when they could afford to pay, and even boast of their moral superiority in using the state system when all they are doing is squeezing out the poor from the best schools," he told the Sunday Times.
The precedent of paying for state education has already been established in universities, which now charge students £9,000 a year, said Seldon. In his report Seldon calls for all families with an income of more than £80,000 a year to be charged if their child goes to an oversubscribed state school. "The more the parents earn, the more they should pay," he says in the report.
"Grammar schools, popular academies and comprehensives would be the most expensive schools," says Seldon, noting that only 3% of pupils at the country's 166 grammar schools come from the poorest homes.
Seldon calls for the wealthiest parents – those earning more than £200,000 a year – to pay up to £20,000 a year at the most oversubscribed secondary schools and £15,000 for primaries – the same as some private schools. The dramatic move is needed to inject social mobility into an education system that does not do enough to give the poorest children the best chance of high academic achievement, he says, adding that privately educated pupils are much more likely to go to leading universities and work in high-status jobs such as law and medicine.
"Instead of estate agents and private tutors getting rich, let's put this money into the state system," he says. Seldon concludes the report by saying: "Britain will be in debt for many years to come. We should be looking for every possible source of extra funds to come into public services and state schooling is the last great bastion holding out against the principle of payment. It is far more morally repellent to continue with the status quo than to start charging fees at top schools for those who can pay."
0 comments:
Post a Comment