Education, education, education

When in 1997 Labour voters voted with "Education, education, education" and "Things can only get better" going around in their head, did they think that 11 years on the Labour schools minister (Jim Knight) would tell the moderate teaching union (the Association of Teachers and Lecturers) that primary classes of 38 were manageable and groups of more than 70 were "perfectly acceptable" if teachers were helped by classroom aides?

Figures obtained by the Conservative party last year suggested that almost 6,000 pupils were being taught in English or Maths classes of more than 50, with 715 pupils being taught in groups of more than 60. By way of contrast, Mrs NotaSheep's sub-teen godson is at a public school and apparently is being taught Maths in a class of 15.