The Elite Education of Education Secretaries.

While there is much (party) politicking about the social and educational backgrounds of Members of Parliament, especially presently around the composition of Boris Johnson's Cabinet, it may be observed that the educational backgrounds of Conservative and Labour education secretaries over the decades have not been wildly different. This article examines their elite biographical peculiarities, and how these combine in other education ministers and their networks of advisors to constitute a distinct 'policy community' in the pursuit of an agenda in educational reform, presently being that of academies and free schools. It is proposed that while diversity in this context may not always be found in their secondary or higher education, this does not limit, as is sometimes posited, either their capacity for compassion in social deprivation, or their understanding of diverse educational structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]