It has been easy in the past for Oxfordshire County Council to pin the blame for underachievement in national exams on schools. Not so now.
First, the council lost a prized star in its rating because of the underachievement in schools. Now, the Government education watchdog Ofsted has pointed the finger directly at the county council, and its criticism ranges much wider than simple exam performance.
It has been known for a long time that exam performance in Oxfordshire has not matched up to expectations. It was one of the drivers behind the reorganisation of schools in Oxford from a three-tier to a two-tier system.
Yet, while there have been some advances in recent years, Oxfordshire continues to perform less well than similar authorities.
Worryingly, this latest report identifies wider issues within services for young children across Oxfordshire. These include the preparation of young people for the world of work and provision for young people with disabilities.
Oxfordshire has a new director for children, Janet Tomlinson, who has previously identified that the county has a lot of work to do to bring its performance up to an acceptable standard.
A lot of headteachers suspect, not without foundation, that the county has also been trying to deflect the blame away from itself and on to schools.
Ms Tomlinson is spot on this week when she says that improving GCSE results is a joint responsibility between the schools and the county council. The question for both is why is it that we have been talking about underachievement in schools for the best part of a decade, yet we still today see the publication of such a critical Ofsted report?
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