Education on the path to square one

At this point we have to believe that the committee was ‘safeguarding’ public money in pulling out of the Les Ozouets contract.

Its latest issue will be to overcome opposition to shifting the Sixth Form Centre away from its relatively modern, purpose-built base, to a 50-year-old secondary school for a period of a year – possibly more – while secondary pupils from that very school shift a couple of miles away to the site that the sixth formers have vacated. Put that way, it makes little sense. Some in the know have called it ‘disastrous’.

Education would sell those plans as a compromise when sixth formers are set to move anyway – their new destination would just be La Mare de Carteret rather than Les Ozouets. Some would accept that 'logic'. But many are not.

The committee will be well aware that its bigger challenge will be to do all it can to avoid this project returning to the States – which would almost certainly be if it can’t contain the capital costs.

For the political opponents of the post-16 reforms in particular are hinting strongly that they will seize on an unexpected opportunity to derail these plans. With potential teacher opposition roused too, Education could quickly find itself back where it started before the 2020 election.