On Friday 14th March I had the pleasure of welcoming Michael Gove MP, the Secretary of State for Education, to Christ the King Catholic Primary School of Firs Avenue, Alfreton.
I wanted to bring the Education Secretary to Amber Valley to show him the school, which is a shining example of excellence in primary education – the latest Key Stage two results were outstanding, with 93 93% of pupils achieving level 4 or above in reading, writing and maths, compared to a national average of 75%.
Mr Gove and I took the opportunity to speak with Headteacher, Helena Carrazedo and her staff and pupils.
It was great for me to be able to show the Education Secretary what a great school we have here. The staff are incredibly talented and hard-working, and foster an excellent education environment and really encourage the pupils to learn.
I also took the opportunity to welcome the announcement of £14 million of additional funding to schools in Derbyshire in 2015/16, which is part of a proposed £350 million boost to the most underfunded local authorities. It represents a huge step towards removing the unfairness in the school funding system – a situation we inherited from the previous Government.
I am confident that the additional funding will help to ensure that local children are prepared for their future so that they can get on and do well in life.