The eighteen years of Conservative stewardship of the maintained educational system have seen numerous fundamental changes. The Labour government's education policy does not begin with tabula rasa, for its starting point has been defined by the previous government to a greater extent than any other incoming government has found. Putting these policies into practice has been, and will be, the task mainly of the headteachers and teachers of the country's 25,000 state schools. In this book the practisioners share the micro effect of policies in their schools. The major policy changes are examined in terms of their effects on the life of the school and the educational opportunities of the young people. This will make an important contribution to the continuing debate about the best way forward for state education in England and Wales.