Last month YouGov conducted some polling on grammar schools, some of the polling explains why Mrs May has so publicly endorsed the expansion of grammar schools today, it would be appear people view them as good for social mobility. and they would like their children to go to grammar schools.

However the polling also found more people in favour of scrapping existing current grammar schools/or not creating any more grammar schools. This is probably based on the studies that show ‘that poor children do dramatically worse in selective areas’ as grammar schools might help a few, in totality they are worse for children.

What is probably the most interesting aspect of why Theresa May has chosen to invest so much political time and capital on this, my inner cynic says this is ‘red meat’ for the Tory right whilst she tries to get Brexit sorted out. It also could lead to a clash with the House of Lords and give her a casus belli for reform of the House of Lords.

Additionally Mrs May saying ‘private schools must do more to keep tax breaks’ might go down very badly with the 48% of Tory MPs who were privately educated. I fear Mrs May is fighting the wrong battles and forgetting the Tories enjoy a majority of only 12 in the House of Commons.

TSE