Plymouth Sutton and Devonport MP Luke Pollard has criticised the government’s COVID recovery plan, urging: “give our kids the education they deserve.”
The government has announced £1.4bn over the next three years for tutoring, teacher training and development. This is one tenth less than the government’s ‘Catch-up Czar’ Kevan Collins has told Ministers is needed.
A leaked report from, Sir Kevan Collins, has emphasised the importance of acting now, with British children having had more time out of school than anywhere else in Europe and 200,000 more children experiencing probable mental health conditions.
Today [Wednesday] Labour has published an extensive £15bn new education plan to help children in Plymouth and across the country in the immediate post-Covid period.
Labour’s Children’s Recovery Plan proposes a dynamic shift of focus across education settings in the wake of the pandemic, presenting a programme for all children to ‘play, learn and develop’ as the post-covid catch up continues.
Luke Pollard MP said:“Plymouth’s kids deserve proper funding. “The government’s education plan is inadequate. Plymouth schools are already poorly funded, and I fear this paltry deal won’t be enough to give our kids the education they deserve after the year they’ve had.“Instead of focussing on private companies let’s just give the money to schools, who know their kids best.
“I want the government to look at Labour’s comprehensive £15bn recovery plan. Our children’s education is worth every last penny – I don’t see how Gavin Williamson and Rishi Sunak think this can be done on the cheap.”