The Evening Advertiser has tackled Education Secretary Estelle Morris over funding for Swindon’s schools.

She appeared at the Local Government Association autumn education conference last week, where an Evening Advertiser reporter handed her a copy of the paper, which carried the headline snubbed after she failed to make herself available for an interview.

The paper explained how Swindon’s schools were struggling to keep up with the rest of the country on GCSE results. It blamed the fact on Swindon Council being given £6.5m less for education than the average unitary authority.

It also contained an open letter to her from the paper’s editor Simon O’Neill.

He said: “Welcome to Swindon. It is ironic that you visit today, when the exam league tables for secondary schools are released.

“They show that while schools in the rest of the country continue to improve, ours are falling behind, despite the valiant efforts of our over-stretched teachers.

“We are afraid to say… that much of the blame lies at your door.

“Your Government has refused to act swiftly, despite the fact you give our schools hundreds of pounds per pupil less than most similar or nearby schools.”

Commenting on the front-page letter, Estelle Morris branded it “unfair”, and defended her decision not to be interviewed by the paper.

She said: “I did not snub your interview. I am here for an hour and after this I have to be in north Birmingham.

“Let’s be clear about this because what people in Swindon think about the way I am treating this very serious issue is very important to me.

“I agreed to come to the Local Government Association conference, not to speak to the Swindon Evening Advertiser. My time was already committed.”

The Evening Advertiser had originally been given permission by the Association to hand out free copies of the paper to every delegate as they entered the conference hall.

But when a team from the paper arrived and an Association press officer saw the front page, they were asked to leave.

But instead, they stood outside the hotel entrance and handed out papers to delegates as they arrived back from coach tours of Swindon and Wiltshire’s schools and education facilities.

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