Following the COVID-19 crisis, as Liberal Democrats, we have a clear call to action we cannot squander – to ensure that all those that have lost their lives as a result of the pandemic have not done so in vain.  Our action must be to support education, experts and other to express their opinions, to engage in intellectual tussle, and to be trusted to develop systems based on values rather than league tables.

Michael Gove’s Education White Paper in 2010 perhaps sent us a glimmer of a world that was going to go wrong.  Even its title was set to diminish a key component of education.  It was called ‘The Importance of Teaching’.  It was not called ‘The Importance of Teachers’.

Slowly the sector became de-professionalised and inspection regimes became increasingly politicised.  This was all a foreshadow of what was to come across many aspects of government.  Indeed, Richard Horton, the Editor of the Lancet (for 25 years) has been scathing about systematic failures in the government approach to science (at the end of January the Lancet published 5 research papers from the world regarding the potential effects of COVID-19, all of which appear to have been ignored by government).

Yet a future generation of children the world over are inspired by the work they are seeing people do, and their resilience is equally inspiring to all of us currently seeing them cope with being ‘locked down’.  They are being inspired to be experts (doctors, teachers, nurses, those working in logistics and retail).  Inspired to use technology to learn.  Inspired to play.

The UN Charter of the Rights of the Child has clauses saying that children should be able to make, comment on, and produce media.  Until the advent of internet broadcast and a range of broadcast apps there was one full time FM radio station in this country where children made shows for children.  That Charter calls for universal primary education and it will be needed more than ever if we are to create the truly international and green World COVID-19 gives us the opportunity to make.

In the middle of this are educational experts.  Teachers who should now be consulted with.  We should open a big national conversation about how we develop skills, encourage democracy, allow people to challenge given assumptions and offer a broad curriculum expertly crafted.

Currently much of education is concerned with inculcating the knowledge and skills that young people need to get jobs and serve industry.  This is not necessarily a bad thing because people need jobs – but they also need the skills and education to appreciate many things such as art and music and to lead a fulfilling life. They also should be given the skills to contribute to their community, to fully use their democratic rights and to be able to appreciate when they are being given ‘fake information by politicians or the media.  The opportunity to develop a curriculum that develops this approach and encourages people to speak truth to power should be taken.

* Robin Webber-Jones is a Borough Councillor on Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and has over 15 years leadership experience in the Further Education and Skills sector. He sits on a number of national education bodies.