SWINDON’S schools will receive extra support after the town’s MPs met with the south west regional schools commissioner yesterday to address some of Ofsted’s scathing criticisms.

Robert Buckland and Justin Tomlinson agree that there is no time to waste following the publication of Bradley Simmons’ letter on Monday which claimed that “Swindon’s children were failed by its schools at every key stage”.

And following the meeting with Rebecca Clark, regional schools commissioner, yesterday, the pair have said working together is key.

“The meeting was a good opportunity to express our concerns but also to try and make a positive step ahead for Swindon,” Robert said.

“The commissioner was very understanding of the challenges and I think we all acknowledge what needs to happen in that the schools, the council and others involved need to work together in a coordinated way. That includes the UTC who have come under criticism recently.

“There is a sense of urgency and I hope the letter, as shocking as it was, will get people to try and take a positive from it.”

Mr Simmons, south west regional director of Ofsted, listed a number of performance rates for both primary and secondary schools in his letters, calling the town’s phonics outcomes some of the worst in the country with only 76 per cent of six-year-olds meeting the expected standard. The figure places Swindon in the bottom 10 local authorities nationally. He also raised similar concerns at KS4 pupils’ outcomes.

Swindon North MP Justin Tomlinson said while Mr Simmons’ comments were honest, the letter was a wakeup call and he is now focussing on moving forward which includes a meeting between headteachers, the council and other involved in education in the next week.

“We have some fantastic local schools and teachers but there is still more to be done so that every child has an opportunity to fulfil their potential,” he added.

“Swindon has become a priority for the commissioner which could potentially present opportunity for further funding. We are seeing some good progress where schools have come together to work in partnership and one way is looking how to speed that process up.

“We want to make sure that every child in Swindon has a first rate education.”

Within her role, the regional schools commissioner can take action where academies and free schools are underperforming and intervene where governance is inadequate. Rebecca will be working closing with key stakeholders in the coming weeks to ensure improvements to education is being made.