The head of Oxford University has rejected calls from the government to sponsor schools. Louise Richardson says Oxford was “very good” as a university, but had “no experience” of running schools.
The call for universities to help set up schools was part of the proposals to expand grammar schools.But Prof Richardson said to become involved in the government’s plans for changing schools would be a “distraction from our core mission”.
The government’s Green Paper on grammar schools proposes that universities should have to either sponsor a school or help set up a new school – otherwise they would not be able to charge higher tuition fees.
About 60 universities, including Birmingham and King’s College London, already sponsor or support schools – and the government argues that the expertise of universities should be harnessed to improve schools and drive social mobility.
But Oxford vice-chancellor Prof Richardson said that her university should focus on what it knew best, which was delivering higher education.
Oxford was named as the best in the world in global ranking published on Wednesday.
“We’re very good at running a university. But we have no experience of running schools, so I think it would be a distraction,” said Prof Richardson.
“We’re deeply sympathetic to the idea of social mobility through education – and we have extensive relationships with schools.”
But she said it was “insulting” to head teachers and school leaders to think that universities could step in and do a better job of running schools.
The university revealed earlier this year that it would be admitting the highest proportion of state of state school students for at least 40 years.
Source: BBC
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