Funny, for some reason I decided to message Toby Young - found his account on facebook. Yeah so it was pretty lame - I was lacking sleep
Graham Wynne 26 November at 03:41
You sir, are a pretentious, self-important snob. Your ideas would be laughable if they weren't so destructive. This documentary just goes to show why people like you shouldn't be allowed to run a school.
Toby Young 27 November at 07:16 Report
Are you a Trot?
Graham Wynne 27 November at 22:49
No not at all. It's just quite obvious that this is some ego trip/point scoring exercise for you, rather than any attempt to improve education. Your wife pretty much admitted as much on the programme.
I loved your amazing lack of self-awareness or any sense of irony when you said you weren't going to partner with an experienced education provider; 'and now the danger is that they will think 'who are these people and what do they know about running a school''.
What indeed...? Just in case you still aren't getting it.
Toby Young 27 November at 23:31 Report
You're wrong, Graham. I believe that the West London Free School will prove that it's possible to deliver a grammar school curriculum to a comprehensive intake and, once we've done that, bog standard comprehensives will have no excuse for steering their less able pupils into pointless vocational courses, such as BTECs in Hair and Beauty.
I don't see how you can accuse me of lacking self-awareness when you quote me saying that people will say exactly what you're saying. Surely, the quote you've used to illustrate your point proves that the opposite of what you're saying is true.
And, no, I'm still not getting it if you mean I don't "get" why a group of teachers and parents aren't qualified to set up a school. There are four experienced teachers on our SteerCo, including John McIntosh who for 29 years was the headmaster of the London Oratory, the most successful comprehensive in England. We're now working with an experienced Project Management Company and, through them, a range of experts across a variety of fields. Once the school is up and running, I'll be a governor, not the headmaster, and you may not be aware of this but parent-governors are not a frightening new development in secondary education.
You may think our project is pointless but, thankfully, your view isn't shared by the teaching profession. We've just advertised for a head and deputy head and the recruitment team we're working with said they've rarely seen such an impressive field of applicants. We're going to end up with an outstanding head and a superb Senior Leadership Team and I have absolutely no doubt our school will quickly establish itself as one of the best state secondaries in the country.
I'm afraid your assessment of me and my team and our project is completely wrong in every detail and you will be proved so in very short order.
Graham Wynne 27 November at 23:41
'I don't see how you can accuse me of lacking self-awareness when you quote me saying that people will say exactly what you're saying. Surely, the quote you've used to illustrate your point proves that the opposite of what you're saying is true.'
Because it appears to have never occurred to you that 'they' might be right. What do you feel qualifies you exactly? Writing blogs for a complete joke of a newspaper?
I genuinely hope I am wrong though.