Did he have a privileged education? You bet he did.
He went to Haverstock, one of those schools that are called comprehensives in much the way that some private schools (and a few comps) are called grammar schools for historical reasons.
Haverstock is (like, say, the London Oratory) one of those half a dozen or so London private schools which have the effrontery to send their bills to the taxpayer, but which are far more difficult to get into than many an institution with no such brass neck. They are the equivalents of the Lenin High School, Havana.
No son of the mighty Ralph Miliband's ever went to Grange Hill, and no one from Grange Hill ever went to Oxford by then, although they might have been the intended beneficiaries of the ILEA scheme that took Miliband the Younger there.
But I doubt even that. That scheme, like his school, was a device whereby the upper middle classes could bill the rest of us for the perpetuation of their privileges from one generation to the next.
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You silly little man. The London Oratory doesn't pretend to be a private school and nor does it sponge off the tax payer by claiming charitable status (unlike "real" private schools).
ReplyDeleteWhat it does do, is treat its pupils with respect and give them the best teachers. The school takes children from all over London, from all backgrounds and from all abilities. Each year, it takes 30 boys who can't even read or write. It gives them extra help with maths and English so that by the time they are doing their GCSEs, they're getting as good results as those deemed "brighter". Stick that in you jealous little pipe and smoke it.
It's always the Tories who post crap on here. Only in the Tory party do class issues still cause so much grief.
"The London Oratory doesn't pretend to be a private school"
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly what it pretends to be, and acts as if it were. A friend of mine, a teacher of many years' standing, once briefly taught there and until several days in sincerely believed that it WAS a private school.
"charitable status"
Vigorously defended by the present, largely public school and then mostly places like this, Government.
"give them the best teachers"
Paid for out of the private school fund maintained by the rich parents and other rich benefactors. Or else why doesn't everywhere do it?
"from all over London"
Think that one through. Then again, you probably can't.
"from all backgrounds"
Bollocks. I know that I wouldn't normally allow that sort of langauge, but there is no other way of putting it. If this were anything even remotely approaching the truth, then the likes of the Blairs would never have sent their sons there, and still wouldn't. "All backgrounds"? - that's exactly what they chose this school in order to avoid.
"from all abilities"
Every private school has its Lower Remove, even if not always called that these days. The old joke is that they end up employing the top set. But then, a lot of the top set are on scholarships. The Lower remove are just rich and fantastically well-connected. Like the London Oratory boys, in fact. And like Miliband, for that matter.
"Each year, it takes 30 boys who can't even read or write"
What percentage of their total intake is that? What interaction do they have with the rest of the pupils? And how come, after 11 years of New Labour, there are 30 boys in London each year who leave primary school unable to read, despite being perfectly capable of being taught to read?
Anyway, any real comp doesn't need to indulge in self-congratulary stunts like this, nor could it even if it wanted to. It just GETS a certain number of pupils per year whom New Labour has thus betrayed.
"Stick that in you jealous little pipe and smoke it"
Jealous of what, if you are telling the truth? Only public school people talk like that.
"Only in the Tory party do class issues still cause so much grief"
Because the only people left in the Labour Party are people like you. You have driven everyone else away.
You genuinely don't understand either that or why the electorate at large cannot distinguish between you and Old Etonians. The only real difference is that at least Old Etonians are honest about what they are, and don't expect the working and middle classes to pay for it.
Instead of relying on your "friend" who once briefly taught there (presumably before being booted out because he/she couldn't hack the amount of work Oratory teachers have to put in), why don't you take some time to form your OWN opinions from first hand experience?
ReplyDeleteI suggest you stand outside the school gates a few times, and see the kind of boys (and girls) who come out. They are the same as any other school, all colours, many faiths (yes indeedy, not all pupils are Catholics) and many backgrounds.
I know this because I'm a parent and I do this every day in term time. I'm not rich, I'm not powerful, I didn't jump through any hoops to get my children into the school (like being less than honest about church attendance and commitment which I understand Mr Cameron is guilty of) and I didn't shun other schools.
The fact is, the Oratory offered my children (two of whom have special needs), something no other school, church or otherwise, could. It offered them a chance.
"presumably before being booted out because he/she couldn't hack the amount of work Oratory teachers have to put in"
ReplyDeleteOh, if you only knew...
"all colours, many faiths"
When did I deny this?
"many backgrounds"
Compared to where?
"I didn't jump through any hoops to get my children into the school"
Then how, exactly?
"I didn't shun other schools"
Of course you did, by definition.
"It offered them a chance."
I'm very glad to hear it. But, I say again, paid for out of the private school fund maintained by the rich parents and other rich benefactors. Or else why doesn't everywhere do it?
I'm really enjoying this.
ReplyDelete"Miliband is just a normal North London boy".
"Our schools are bog standard comps that let anybody in, we're not toffs, we're not, we're not, we're NOT!!!"
Yeah, right.
Keep at them, David.
I'm really enjoying this too. Keep on reading the Daily Mail, boys, you couldn't cope with anything more challenging.
ReplyDeleteI'll have to pop into the London Oratory Sixth Form Common Room to find a copy of the Daily Mail, hidden inside the Guardian. More than a metaphor for the parents.
ReplyDelete