Labour hopeful chooses city sc

LABOUR leadership hopeful David Miliband chose Bristol's flagship Redland Green School to make a keynote speech on education.

Mr Miliband was the Schools Minister who gave the go-ahead for the long-awaited comprehensive in north central Bristol seven years ago.

He was in the city yesterday to visit the Pounds 36 million building and meet staff and some of the students, aged ten to 15, as well as to speak to an invited audience of parents, teachers, Labour party members and students.

Mr Miliband told the Evening Post that Redland Green School had been a reflection of parent power and had "changed the game" in Bristol, meeting the legitimate demands of the local community for extra local provision and higher standards.

Brass Brooch

Its post-16 centre was attracting students from a wide area, he noted, while its inclusive education provision was enhanced by having Claremont School, for students with profound and multiple learning difficulties, on site.

Mr Miliband said Bristol had benefited from huge investment in schools under Labour, both in terms of new buildings and increases in the workforce.

He conceded that buildings alone would not address underachievement but said they provided a platform for people to make a difference.

But he warned: "People are right to be very worried that the big gains from schools like this are going to be under threat under the coalition Government."

Mr Miliband was also interviewed by Year 9 students Luke Stafford and Anna Murphy, both 14, for the school magazine.

The former Foreign Secretary visited classrooms and saw students making headgear for the St Paul's Carnival and designing an Olympic- themed logo as part of a week of replica tag heuer watches creative activities.

In his speech, Mr Miliband, who was welcomed to the school by head teacher Sarah Baker, outlined his "brazenly aspirational" vision for truly comprehensive education.

Speaking in the post-16 common room, with students watching from a balcony above, he said it was important in opposition to propose new ideas as well as to expose the faults of the Government and to oppose their policies.

The three key areas he highlighted were teachers, the curriculum and universities.

He said that ironing out inequality meant raising the floor level of achievement much higher than before and also raising the ceilings.

"We should be looking out to the new global gold standard not back to the old gold standard of the past," he said.

Mr Miliband said students spent too much time in exams and revising for exams rather than learning.

He said Mrs Baker had told him 60 out of 380 teaching days were lost in this way.

"The obstacle course of GCSE exams, AS exams and then A-level exams really is over-testing of a deadening variety," he said.

One of the biggest frustrations of his career, he revealed, was being moved from the Department for Education and Skills three weeks before the report on 14-19 qualifications by Mike Tomlinson - which was later rejected by the Prime Minister - was published.

"It was one area, sadly, where Tony Blair was not the moderniser."

On higher education, Mr Miliband said it was deeply disturb
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