Sir – As it was Professor Howson who revealed the shocking state of KS1 results in Oxford City schools nearly two years ago, we are, of course, delighted that both the city and county have found some more money to help schools achieve the results pupils in the city deserve from our education system.

It is a sad fact that both the Thatcher and Blair Governments failed to ensure adequate funding for parts of the counties like Oxfordshire where children needed more than average funding to help them succeed. However, we are saddened to see schools being faced with rival schemes from which they have to choose.

As Liberal Democrats, we would have much preferred an agreed joint strategy between city and county councils. A single arrangement agreed between all funders might also have attracted other funding. A single scheme would have meant, for instance, that children changing schools weren’t faced with an entirely new scheme that can only cause confusion. A number of schools in the city will gain from the additional funds supplied through the Pupil Premium, a Liberal Democrat policy supported by the Prime Minister, if not all his colleagues. Indeed, he extended the scheme to cover ‘service children’ that will also benefit many families throughout the county. Extra funds for city schools will help to improve results but so will a determination on the part of all involved, teachers, parents, politicians and school governors, that pupils in Oxford and indeed the whole county will receive an education we can all be proud to talk about.

Altaf Khan, Shadow Cabinet Member for Schools, Oxfordshire County Council Jean Fooks, Leader, Oxford City Council Liberal Democrat group, County Councillor for Summertown and Wolvercote Professor John Howson, Oxford