Consultation Questions

Camden’s draft education strategy, Building Back Stronger, has been developed jointly by the Council and Camden Learning. As we come out of the pandemic, this represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to refresh our ambitions for our education system in Camden. Now is the time to reflect on how we can build on the strengths that have sustained education during the pandemic and address the many challenges it has revealed. We are holding a six-week, public consultation on the strategy, which runs from Friday 22 October until Monday 6 December 2021. We want to invite everyone with an interest in education in Camden to contribute their ideas, energy and inspiration as part of the consultation.

Camden’s schools have been on the front line, working tirelessly in very difficult circumstances to respond to the pandemic and mitigate its effects. At the same time, they have also faced a range of further challenges, including falling pupil numbers, rising numbers of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, and a difficult financial climate.

The draft strategy’s name, Building Back Stronger, reflects a shared determination to deliver a radical and genuinely local response to these challenges, built on our common values. It affirms the transformative power of education and its potential to combat inequalities, ensuring that no child is left behind. It also reflects our collective conviction that a truly local education system, with schools rooted in their local communities and collaborating for the benefit of all Camden pupils, offers the best chance for our young people to thrive. We have reflected on the fundamental purposes of education. What sort of education will foster young people’s abilities to stretch themselves to achieve the highest standards, to be confident in themselves, to lead happy and fulfilling lives, to find rewarding work and contribute positively to society?

Furthermore, the draft strategy promotes the importance of a system rooted in both excellence and equity. These are not competing ideals. A system which is better for disadvantaged children is better for everyone.

We welcome all responses to the draft strategy, either to parts of it or the whole thing. However, at the bottom of this page, we have produced eleven consultation questions, some general but most very specific, which you might prefer to respond to below. Please note that if you answer the questions below, your comments will be publicly available on this site. Please do not include any personal information in your answers . If you prefer, you can also email us your comments to comingbackstronger@camden.gov.uk.

Before answering these questions, we would encourage you to read either the summary version or full version of the strategy.

*Please note, we will also be renewing our Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) strategy in 2022. If you have further ideas and suggestions relating to Camden’s SEND provision or would like to be added to the mailing list for more information on the SEND strategy development, please email sendstrategy@camden.gov.uk .