Hard work paying off for schools

The standard of education in Peterborough has for some years been the city’s Achilles heel as it tries to convince itself and, more importantly, others from outside its boundaries that it is one of the places to be. Over the past decade millions and millions of pounds have been poured into the city’s education system – including new or revamped schools boasting impressive state of the art facilities. Despite this it has been a bumpy road with many setbacks along the way as the city endeavours to improve standards and narrow the gap between itself and other better performing cities and areas. At last, there are signs that there is a sustainable upward trend in the performance of city schools. This year’s A-level results saw an improvement in the city, which was all the more impressive given a drop in pass rates nationally. The importance of having good schools can not be underestimated as a key driver for attracting new businesses and new people to the city, and it is important for all of that the hard work of pupils, teachers and council staff continues to bear fruit. It is important to remember that by many measures the city still scores below the national average - and average should be the minimum the city and its children can accept. This week the city’s annual beer festival is in town. It is a wonderful event which Peterborough people are justifiably proud of. Thousands of beer-lovers from the city and beyond descend on the Embankment to prove that people can enjoy alcohol responsibly. We can all raise a glass to that.