Teenagers should study maths and English beyond GCSE, says Rishi Sunak

Teenagers should study core subjects including maths and English beyond GCSE as part of a new “British Baccalaureate”, Rishi Sunak has said.

Setting out his education policies,  the Conservative leadership contender criticised the current A-level curriculum as overly narrow, saying it fails  to prepare young people for future ­economic opportunities.

The former chancellor pointed to other countries in Europe and Asia where students have to study maths until the age of 18.

Mr Sunak also vowed to create a ‘Russell Group’ of technical colleges to provide young people with a prestigious alternative to university if he becomes Prime Minister.

Setting out his education policies, the Conservative leadership contender also said he would increase the use of AI in schools and continue a crackdown on poor value universities courses.

The Russell Group was established in 1994 and now covers 24 universities - including Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College London - with a reputation for demanding top grades and carrying out cutting-edge research.

He pledged to strengthen existing Institutes of Technology by giving them degree-awarding powers and to create “regius professorships for technical education” to identify the best.

Vow to clamp down on certain degrees

Mr Sunak said: “A good education is the closest thing we have to a silver bullet when it comes to making people’s lives better.

“These proposals represent a significant stride towards parity of esteem between vocational and academic education.”

The former chancellor also vowed to “take a tougher approach to university degrees that saddle students with debt, without improving their earning potential”, and to accelerate legislation protecting free speech on campuses.

On schools, Mr Sunak would introduce a two year “accountability holiday” for underperforming schools taken on by leading academy chains, meaning trusts will not be penalised while turning around failing schools.

He said he would open 75 new free schools, while “carving out” more time for teachers’ professional development, including through greater uptake of technology.

A “headteacher shadowing” programme would give new school leaders the opportunity to learn from top heads.

The Department for Education would meanwhile be given a “new mandate” to look into the application of digital technology in schools, including using AI to “reduce workload outside of teaching time”.

There would also be expanded use of technology in the classroom to “inspire children with new ways of learning”.

Mr Sunak said: “Every child deserves a world-class education and, if I become Prime Minister, I will make it my mission from day one to ensure that’s what they get.”

Earlier in the campaign, Mr Sunak said he would bring back grammar schools, although his team later rowed back on the comment by saying it was “about expanding existing grammar schools”.