Failing Labour now move to limit future of our children in latest education blow

Our failing Labour Government revealed more miserable news this week for highachieving state schools, including the academy I founded 34 years ago. Funding for state schools that is used to cover the costs of students studying the International Baccalaureate's Diploma Programme is to be slashed. The latest cutback, due to take effect from next year, means some 5,000 students are likely to lose access to the IB diploma, as state schools will not be able to afford to offer it.

Some 20 state schools in England currently support the diploma qualification, with each receiving an additional £2,400 per pupil to deliver it. Since Labour came to power, it has introduced a series of measures aimed at dumbing down education, including the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which was widely criticised as politically motivated.

The Bill's proposed changes included forcing academies to teach the national curriculum for the first time and stripping them of their power to recruit expert teachers who do not have official qualifications. The expansion of academy schools in England has been the biggest success story in education for a generation. Yet, not content with attacking their future, the Government now seems determined to demolish the IB in English state schools.

The IB diploma is an alternative to A-levels for students aged 16-18. It seeks to give them a more rounded education by allowing them to typically choose six subjects, whereas three is the norm for A levels.

The IB emphasises a holistic education centred on core competencies, skills and values, all of which are critical to student development, while its required academic levels are extremely high, too.

However, because IB is classified as a "large programme", it requires more teaching time than the standard A-level route, hence the need the small amount of extra funding per pupil.

An IB statement said: "This development is deeply disheartening and will make it extremely difficult for state schools in England to continue offering the IB Diploma and Career-related Programme.

"For nearly 50 years, the IB has provided young people in state schools with access to a world-class education, complementing national qualifications and equipping them with the knowledge and critical skills needed for higher education, apprenticeships, and careers."

I echo those sentiments along with the call for Labour to reconsider its nonsensical decision. The savings are minimal yet the education opportunities for thousands of students will be severely harmed.

Are there no limits to the steps this spiteful Government is willing to take to erode the achievements of our high-achieving state schools, including the Ashcroft Technology Academy (ATA) in Putney, south-west London, which I founded in 1991?

Today ATA provides free education for more than 1,500 inner-city children of all abilities and backgrounds. The opportunity to take the IB for the last two years of their schooling has been a key part of its academic success, with some 10% of students choosing it over A-levels.

And ATA recently won the award for best state school for the IB Diploma. The IB cohort at ATA includes children from a range of backgrounds. Their academic performance and university destinations are impressive.

These destinations include, but are not limited to, the Universities of Cambridge, Warwick, Exeter, Bristol and University College London. At present, ATA is the 15th top performing school in the country - quite something, when you consider that's out of more than 4,000 secondary schools.

And the IB, which seeks to have an inquiry-based approach to learning, gives pupils an edge. A recent survey found IB students were three times more likely than matched A-level students to enrol in a top 20 higher education institution.

Unsurprisingly given its success, IB is now available in some 150 countries. Currently more than 6,000 schools globally offer it and some two million students study its programmes.

So, at a time when we should be looking for ways to boost numbers taking the IB, Labour is instead trying to wipe it out. Is it any wonder so many of us feel this Government's doing more to harm to our children's education, and their futures, than any in living memory?

• Lord Ashcroft KCMG PC is an international businessman, philanthropist, author and pollster. Visit lordashcroft.com Follow him on X/Facebook @LordAshcroft