Introduction

Howard Glennerster has carried out research on almost all the social services, but above all, he has worked on financing systems and the state of welfare (for example, Glennerster and Hills, 1998; Glennerster, 2003). His work on the financing of education is unsurpassed. This chapter takes as its starting point a seminal paper, ‘United Kingdom education 1997-2001’ (Glennerster, 2002), which reviews the achievements of the Labour government's education policy and in so doing addresses education funding and school performance. In this chapter, these two themes are re-examined in light of the objectives of Labour administrations since 1997.

Education policy has had a high political profile since the Labour government was elected into office in 1997. In three manifestos – 1997, 2001 and 2005 – education has been the government's ‘number one priority’ (Labour Party, 2001, 2005). The objectives of the government have been far-reaching. In relation to schools, these have included increasing resources, improving educational standards and tackling disadvantage.

This chapter argues that, although some objectives are clearly being met, tensions exist and some policies need to be re-evaluated if the overall aim is to ensure that the school system in England offers the highest-quality education to all children. The longstanding achievement gaps between children from different social groups remain significant (DfES, 2005a). It is further argued that some of the policies need to be re-evaluated in light of their potential to increase segregation and reduce social cohesion.

More specifically, the chapter examines the extent to which key aspects of the Labour Party's manifesto have been realised and what still needs to be done to ensure that the educational needs of those who are disadvantaged are met. The focus is on two main issues about which Labour made commitments: levels of resourcing and improving educational standards. The focus in both cases will be on examining the extent to which policies are meeting the needs of all children including those who are disadvantaged. The final section concludes, reviewing the extent to which the Labour government has succeeded in meeting its objectives and highlighting the challenges that remain.

Resourcing

Prior to each election, the Labour Party in its manifesto made commitments to increase the proportion of national income spent on education.