Building a better future for Blackpool’s children
As parents here in Blackpool South we want our children to have every chance to succeed. Under the Tories our children have been left without the qualifications, skills or opportunities to get ahead. So I’m proud to back Labour’s landmark reforms to the national curriculum.
These changes are about more than exams and grades – they’re about preparing our young people for the world they actually live in. At the heart of the reforms is a renewed focus on the basics: oracy, reading, writing and maths, particularly in primary school and the tricky “lost years” at the start of secondary. Get these foundations right and children can build the confidence and skills to take on anything.
But this curriculum doesn’t just cover the basics. We live in a world awash with misinformation, social media and fast-moving technology – under Labour’s reforms children will learn how to spot fake news and online disinformation. And they’ll get lessons in financial literacy, civic education and their rights and responsibilities – skills for life, not just for passing exams.
We’re ensuring every child has access to a richer, more rounded education. Our new core enrichment entitlement means every pupil can experience sport, the arts, outdoor adventure, civic engagement and gain essential life skills. It’s about giving children the confidence, curiosity and resilience they need to thrive.
This is all part of Labour’s wider Plan for Change under which we’ve already delivered 30 hours of free childcare, free breakfast clubs that save parents around £450 a year, capped branded school uniforms and are investing £1.4 billion to fix the crumbling state of our schools. Together these measures make sure that every child and family has a real chance to succeed.
The government is committed to implementing the new curriculum in full by September 2028, with the final version published in spring 2027. Key changes include:
Making citizenship compulsory in primary schools, covering media literacy, financial literacy, democracy, law and climate education.
Replacing the narrow computer science GCSE with a broader computing GCSE, and exploring qualifications in data science and AI for 16-18-year-olds.
Reforming school performance measures, scrapping the EBacc and revising Progress 8 to encourage a wider curriculum including arts, humanities and languages.
Supporting schools to deliver a triple science offer, ahead of a statutory entitlement for all GCSE pupils.
Introducing new oracy frameworks across primary and secondary schools, embedding speaking, reading and writing across every subject.
Exploring a new language qualification to motivate pupils to continue learning languages beyond GCSE and A-level.
I’ve visited almost every school in Blackpool South – it’s one of the real highlights of this job. On each visit I see every day the talent and ambition of our young people – they just need the right opportunities and support to flourish. These reforms will give them the tools to succeed in school in work and in life.
For over a decade Conservative governments repeatedly showed they were willing to undermine our schools and teachers rather than support them. From Michael Gove’s combative war on teachers and dictatorial curriculum changes, to scrapping school building projects unlawfully and allowing unqualified teachers in classrooms, their policies were reckless and confusing. These short-sighted decisions left young people unsupported, squeezed schools and damaged morale across the profession.
Labour is putting that right. I’m proud that every child in Blackpool South will soon have a curriculum that equips them for the future alongside practical support for their families. It’s not just about exams – it’s about giving our young people the skills, confidence and opportunities they deserve to thrive in the world we live in today.
