Knowsley council ‘determined’ to allow pupils to study A-levels

Knowsley council has said it is ‘determined’ to ensure young people can study A-levels in its borough, after previously encouraging pupils to receive the qualifications elsewhere.

Gary See, education cabinet member and Paul Boyce, children’s services director, for Knowsley council held a meeting with Schools Minister Nick Gibb, Vicky Beer, regional commissioner, and local MPs. The meeting concluded with both parties issuing a joint statement committing the council to ensuring the provision of high-quality A Levels within the borough by September 2017.

The statement also symbolises a U turn by Knowsley council, which had initially adopted an official policy of helping pupils to get into sixth forms outside the borough. Boyce had previously claimed that while the council had no input over several local providers’ decisions to abandon A-level courses, it was likely setting up a new provision would be ‘unaffordable and unviable’.

However, in an interview with ECHO, See said: “We had to acknowledge and deal with a situation where providers were saying that continuation of an A-Level offer was not viable. Given the way A-Levels are provided and funded, we have always had limited powers to intervene or change the decisions made by individual bodies. That however doesn’t mean that we didn’t have an aspiration for local people to study for A-Levels within Knowsley.

The joint statement between the government and Knowsley council said: “Ensuring high quality A Level provision in Knowsley is a priority for us all and we are determined that there will be good A Level provision in Knowsley borough by September 2017.

“We will work together to achieve this and have agreed to hold regular meetings between Ministers, the regional schools commissioner, officials, MPs and the local authority to ensure progress is being made.”