Secretary of State for Education Nicky Morgan visited Woodkirk Academy on Monday to meet with Sixth Form students to have a Q&A session. Nicky answered questions from students answering a range of questions from education, teaching and the future of education. Woodkirk Academy is an outstanding school and I was pleased to take Education Secretary to visit. They are innovative, have high standards, great teachers and two weeks ago I went to their fantastic production of The Adams Family.
As someone who has worked in education and schools I value the hard work of our teachers and the work that they. Ensuring local children get the best start in life and get into good careers is a top priority for me. To do this we need to ensure our local schools are well funded and that they have strong links to local employers. Schools in Morley and Outwood have received an extra £8.6 million since 2011 through the Pupil Premium, a government initiative to give support to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. I’ve launched business and skills surveys for school children and employers to help our schools give their students the schools they need to find good employment locally. Education has the power to change people’s lives; it can lift people out of poverty, improve job prospects and strengthen our economy by providing the right skills that businesses need.