At this year’s Conservative Party Conference, the Education Policy Institute has partnered with AQA to organise a public panel on ‘Conservative education priorities in the new parliament’.
In their 2024 general election manifesto, the Conservative party highlighted that “education is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet”, and pledged, among others, to introduce the Advanced British Standard (ABS), a qualification that aims to ensure a wider range of subjects are studied until the end of school; to create a register of children not in school; to expand “strong academy trusts”; to deliver 60,000 more school places for children with SEND and to legislate for clarity around what children are taught in PSHE, bringing in age-limits on certain content.
As we start a new parliamentary term, it is timely to consider which of these pledges will continue to be a priority for the party and how the Conservatives can go about delivering to ensure they are implemented effectively. This panel will bring together politicians, school leaders and sector experts to discuss these questions and consider what else might be needed to tackle the major challenges currently facing the education system, raise standards and support high-quality education for all.
We are delighted to be joined by Reza Schwitzer, AQA; Jonny Uttley, The Education Alliance; Leora Cruddas, Confederation of Schools Trusts and Pepe Di’lasio, ASCL. Natalie Perera, our Chief Executive, will chair this panel.
** Note: This event will take place in the conference secure zone. To access the secure zone you will need to obtain a pass directly from the Conservative Party.**
