Is education at the centre of Lib Dem philosophy?

The preamble to our constitution says no-one should be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity. These three go together. So, when we put Education among our top priorities, we must get it right.

Thus, poverty can prevent some people from getting the benefits of a good education, while conformity to a backward-looking community can inhibit an individual's educational development. In September 2013, RISE (Research and Information on State Education) concluded that 80% of the difference in performance of school pupils was due to factors outside the school. Our schools and colleges cannot on their own, solve the ills of society.

However, this is no excuse for what was presented in the Agenda 2020 conference paper at Bournemouth (consultation paper 121). It only had two slim references to Education (pars. 2.6 and 3.5.3) and we need to say much more.

Thus, in our philosophy we must do more than just talk about educational opportunities and state the principle of helping people to help themselves. Many disadvantaged people need help to avail themselves of opportunities and all sorts of people are not always turned on by the educational opportunities sometimes provided for them. So we also need properly funded local agencies who can get alongside people in their communities.

Then we must extend the principle that decisions should be made at the lowest practical level (normally used in the context of government); we should enable decisions to be made as close as possible to the individual. Our educational institutions need freedom for decisions to be made that nurture and develop each person.

Person-centred, quality teaching and learning should be the main focus, not structural change. The main concern about structures (such as free schools and academies) is that they should be a fair use of limited funds, overseen as close to communities as possible and enable those involved to help the disadvantaged.

We believe also in equality of status for all forms of good education, not just the academic. I want to see a blurring of the divide between vocational and academic and a greater emphasis on practical approaches to learning; good experience, rather than just force-feeding.

Finally, education is not just for getting a good job, but should be a creative broadening experience. Education should enable good personal development in outlook, morality and spirit, recognising the value of each human individual. Education should help people live free from exploitation and oppression, supporting people in a way that does not regard them as slaves to the economy or to the establishment.

At the conference debate, Julie Smith in her summation took this message well and I look forward to an improved document. I also look forward to an explanation from our leader as to why Education is not among the top 7 Parliamentary priorities at the moment.

* Nigel Jones, newly-elected chair of the Liberal Democrat Education Association, 13 yrs as a local councillor until May'15 and Parliamentary candidate (Newcastle under Lyme 2010, Walsall North 2015); spent all his working life as a teacher in schools and FE and now a Methodist Local Preacher

Read more by Nigel Jones or more about education.