Sarah McCarthy-Fry, Labour / Co-operative MP for Portsmouth North, used a House of Commons Adjournment debate yesterday evening to champion the cause of education in Portsmouth.

The Portsmouth North MP said that whilst the number of children getting 5 or more good GCSEs in Portsmouth had more than doubled since Labour came to power in 1997, “Too many still leave school to take low-paid work, with no prospect of training or advancement.” 

Welcoming the Government’s commitment to Trust schools, Sarah argued that the challenge now is to ensure that these institutions are accountable to the communities they serve.  One way to do this, she suggested, was to enact the principles of co-operation. She said “One of the biggest challenges, especially in socially deprived areas, is ensuring that parents have the confidence and the skills to play their part. If the parents have had a bad experience in school, they are understandably reluctant to come forward. The modern co-operative movement has a proud record of community participation and involvement over its long history. Co-operative trust schools will be able to draw on considerable experiences to deliver results.”

Replying to the debate Jim Knight MP, the Schools Minister offered to support Portsmouth Local Educational Authority and local schools if they wanted to go down this route and Sarah will be meeting with council officials soon to discuss this further.

Sarah said "The co-operative trust model is about parents, school staff and the local community all working together to improve their local school. Other schools around the country are following this model and I'm sure it would benefit schools in Portsmouth"

Click here for the full speech.