著者

谷川 至孝

出版者

日本教育行政学会

雑誌

日本教育行政学会年報 (ISSN:09198393)

巻号頁・発行日

no.34, pp.125-142, 2008-10-10

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This study considers educational policies in terms of "the Third Way." Welfare Pluralism, the pluralistic provision on welfare service delivery, is recognised in this study as a system concept of the Third Way in which the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) is recognised as an important actor. This paper analyses the public and educational policies of the Labour Government focusing especially on the action of the VCS in the United Kingdom (UK). It considers how these educational policies embody Welfare Pluralism and show their meanings and problems. It also considers whether these educational policies are worthy of being described as representative of the Third Way. The tradition of charity in the UK has cultivated Welfare Pluralism. The first Act concerning charity, for example, the Statute of Charitable Uses, was enacted in 1601. As of 31 March 2005 there were 164,000 active general charities in the UK. The Compact, an agreement for working partnerships between the Government and the VCS that ws enacted in 1998, recognised the contribution which the VCS makes to a democratic society and to public service. The Government then engaged in consultations with the VCS in terms of decision-making concerning public policies and played a role as a funder of the VCS. The Compact was expected to change the relationship between Government and the VCS from one of a "Contract Culture" under Conservative Government to one of a "Partnership Culture" that would help cultivate Welfare Pluralism. These movements have had an impact on educational policies as a part of public policies. Educational policies, moreover, have provided particular conditions for the shift to Welfare Pluralism. This is the progress of what has been called Inter-Agency Working (IAW). The IAW is a concept to provide seamless holistic services for children and their families at one-stop shops through collaboration between public, private and voluntary agencies. The green paper Every Child Matters in 2003 is the base of the IAW. This paper proposed that Sure Start Children's Centres and Extended Schools provide these services as one-stop shops. In these institutions, too, the VCS plays an important role. The IAW has the following problems, however: (1) Funding from the public sector: a) The switch from grant or core funding to fee or strategic funding. Funding shows a tendency to be more closely tied to contracts or outcomes, and b) Concentration of contracts and funding to big organisations, (2) Concerning proof of outcomes: The outcomes-led approach stereotypes the action of the VCS. In conclusion, the Labour Government has emphasized the concept of partnership and has agreed to the Compact, but has in practice it has taken over the system of Contract Culture in the operation of partnership. One result of this could be that peculiarities of the VCS are then spoiled and educational services are stereotyped. Real Welfare Pluralism does not call for this result, and the real Third Way requires different systems or operations.