On Friday I visited Hadleigh Community Primary School, and had the pleasure of being shown around by headmaster Gary Pilkington. I was pleased to receive really positive feedback, including a ‘message for Ministers’, that the new national funding formula is now starting to deliver for the school. Thus, I was delighted to be able to praise Gary and his staff in the school funding petition debate that took place in Westminster yesterday. In particular, I highlighted how this relatively large primary for my constituency – 500 pupils – has moved from an OFSTED of ‘requires improvement’ to ‘good’. In the same debate I emphasised that, whilst funding is a key issue, it’s the results schools achieve and the impact they have on our children's’ life chances which really matters. There are so many signs of better standards in our schools, we now need to ensure that the fairer funding formula continues to deliver after what we all accept have been challenging times.
