Six Key Takeaways from the 2024 Labour Party Conference

We were fortunate enough to attend the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool this past week – their first conference in 15 years out of opposition and as the Government. Our team immediately got to work immersing ourselves in all things education with leaders from across the sector. We are, after all, united in our desire to create an education system that genuinely works for everyone and breaks down barriers for young people. Going in, we were especially keen to know how the new government will create equitable pathways to opportunities so that all young people can have the future they deserve.

We were energised by the great number of events that focused on youth, education and skills – signalling the drive from the sector to make sure this new government delivers meaningfully on the promises they made for young people.

Here’s six crucial themes that ran through the conference:

1. A fully joined-up approach

A cross-departmental, holistic focus was called for in almost every educational conversation. For young people to access fair educational opportunities, other key areas of their lives need to be addressed simultaneously, including their mental and physical health, access to basic amenities and housing, and growing up in a safe community. Tackling the educational disadvantage gap demands looking at disadvantage more broadly and understanding young people’s lives beyond school. As the CEO of Teach First, Russell Hobby, put it too, with schools increasingly taking on the role of a miniature welfare state, they cannot be truly effective. Invest in every part of a young person’s life and educational outcomes will improve.

2. Championing different FE and HE pathways

Several panel events discussed the importance of providing access to a wider variety of effective post-16 and post-18 pathways. Each young person’s specific skillset should be celebrated equally and society must move away from only specific educational routes being key markers of success. There is a fundamental need for parity of esteem between university, colleges, apprenticeships and vocational training options, and achieving that would help young people make informed decisions about the route they will thrive most in. The Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, even suggested bringing in vocational training from the age of fourteen to motivate and champion different options early in life.

3. Building skills for the future

Leading figures such as Skills Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith highlighted the urgent need to bridge the gap between creating opportunities for young people and both the skills shortage now and the specific needs of the future; whether that be tech and AI jobs or the green skills industry. After all, 872,000 young people (one in eight) are not in education, employment or training (NEET) and one third of jobs cannot be filled because of skills shortages. Skills England will address these alarming figures by creating a wider industrial plan, strategically shaping funding routes including the new Growth and Skills levy, and providing FE institutions with the support and framework they need to innovate. Similarly, the youth guarantee intends to ensure pathway access for all young people, although some suggested it should begin at 16-years-old rather than 18-years-old.

4. True localism

Devolution and supporting a place-based approach was put forward by many as an effective way to achieve nation-wide equity; albeit with the key caveat that this must not come at the expense of national frameworks and approaches. The Local Government Association also emphasised that this does not mean simply waiting for full devolution; youth and careers hubs are in place across the country, so the work of localism has already begun. However, with just 120 youth hubs in place, these structures need urgent expansion and funding.

5. Knowing what works

The notion of ‘evolution, not revolution’ was expressed from both the education sector and government, with an emphasis on continuing all that is successful for students and staff, and transforming what is not. The newly launched curriculum and assessment review was an often-mentioned example of this; an agreement from both sides that change is needed, but that which works well should be strengthened not removed.

6. They’re really listening this time

We heard from several MPs and ministers at the heart of the Department for Education, including Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson and Minister of State for School Standards, Catherine McKinnell. They all emphasised their commitment to genuinely engaging with individuals and organisations across the education sector, welcoming the wealth of expertise available. As Sarah Smith MP and National Mission Champion for Opportunity, said, ‘this is being done with you, not to you.’

The many eloquent and passionate young people speaking throughout the conference similarly demanded that youth voice be centralised every step of the way. Most fundamentally, young people want to make truly informed decisions about training, further and higher educational pathways, and different routes into careers which are all celebrated.

There is clearly great appetite to ensure young people across the UK thrive. Whilst encouraging to see our key areas of focus prioritised widely and to hear Bridget Phillipson’s ambition for careers education, we remain interested to hear more detail on specific steps that will be taken, particularly around improving careers guidance throughout school and implementing universal work experience. We are passionate about giving all young people the necessary tools and opportunities to reach their potential, and look forward to working closely with the Department for Education’s ministers and civil servants to do just that.

Looking at the wider picture, with one third of teachers leaving the profession within five years and 40% reporting that there is at least one bucket to catch water leaks in their school, staff and students need action now. However, the Labour Party Conference made it clear how committed people are across the sector to bring about transformational change. We will be part of that every step of the way.

Written by Matthew Kent, Press Officer and Nina Charalambous, Senior Policy Advisor