End the ban on new grammar schools, says NSN head

Speaking to the Telegraph, Timothy said he believes that the ban on new grammar schools was ‘arbitrary’ and should e scrapped, as it was denying many parents the right to choose the most appropriate education for their children.

Timothy said: “I don’t believe in limiting the number of good schools. I do believe in the diversity of the system and choice for parents, and I don’t see why selection couldn’t be a part of that choice.”

He added: “I grew up in a working class part of Birmingham and happened to be lucky enough to go to a grammar school. Going to a good school changed my life. But there are not enough good schools to change enough kids’ lives.

“Ultimately, it is about standing up and saying this culture of low expectations that has been there for years in certain parts of the country has to end. We are just writing children off and it is immoral. That to me is the simple truth behind school reform.”

Timothy did stress that although he supports lifting the ban, he did not want to see a return to a fully selective system, saying: “This isn’t an argument for a full-on return to a selective system of grammars and secondary moderns. If you have got an incredibly diverse market of school providers in a particular county or city then I think it’s arbitrary to say there shouldn’t be a new selective school, if that’s what parental demand suggests should happen.”

Read more