Accused teachers will get right to anonymity

Under a Tory government teachers accused of abusing pupils would be shielded from media coverage until the police pressed charges, Theresa May, the shadow Education Secretary, told the conference.

Under a Tory government teachers accused of abusing pupils would be shielded from media coverage until the police pressed charges, Theresa May, the shadow Education Secretary, told the conference.

New reporting restrictions would prevent the press printing names or photos of teachers while accusations were investigated. Ms May said: "I heard last night of a teacher of 27 years who was falsely accused of abuse by a pupil. He lost his job, his role as a foster parent and his role in the local Scouts, his life ruined by a malicious accusation."

Ms May also announced plans to reinstate the assisted- places scheme, which provides grants for pupils to attend fee-paying schools and which was abolished by Labour.

And she said the Tories would remove disruptive students from classrooms and create progress centres, away from the school site, for children who have been expelled. "The disruptive few must not be allowed to damage the education of the many. The next Conservative government will give headteachers the power to expel disruptive pupils, putting minds at rest that their child's education will not be damaged by the disruptive few."

Ms May was applauded when she announced plans to hand control of schools back to heads and parents.

She said she would make state schools "free schools", which would receive their budgets directly from the government, "based on a national funding formula". She added: "Free schools will be able to keep their sixth forms - free from Labour's threat of lower funding or closure."

Ms May said the Tories would abolish the Government's flagship New Deal. "Far from finding jobs for 250,000 young people, as Labour promised, the New Deal has only found jobs for 13,000."