Bright pupils should attend masterclass, says Burnham

Bright state-school pupils should be taught in "masterclasses" to prepare them for elite universities, the shadow Education Secretary, Andy Burnham, said yesterday.

The Labour minister told the think-tank Demos that "the very brightest children" from a local authority area should be brought together for lessons from the age of 14. This would help them to "gain a clearer idea of what is required on the Russell Group or Oxbridge path".

He compared his approach to the Government's "back to the future" policies which recognise Latin and Greek for the new English Baccalaureate but not engineering.