- Fiona Millar
Fiona Millar (born 1958,
Lambeth ) is a Britishjournalist and high profile education campaigner.Early life
She attended
Camden School for Girls , then a selective grammar school, on "Sandall Road" inCamden Town . She would later become a veteran critic of grammar schools. She studied [http://www.econ.ucl.ac.uk Economics] and Economic History at UCL.Career
She began in journalism as a trainee on the
Daily Mirror , later moving to theDaily Express .She was an adviser to
Cherie Blair for many years from 1995-2003. She is not keen on what she calls sharp-elbowedmiddle class parents getting into some of the better state schools.In 2005, along with
Melissa Benn , she co-wrote a pamphlet entitled "A Comprehensive Future: Quality and Equality for all our children" and is active in the campaign against the Trust Schoolswhite paper , appearing alongside such Labour Party luminaries asNeil Kinnock andEstelle Morris at campaign meetings.She is Vice-Chair of [http://www.comprehensivefuture.org.uk Comprehensive Future] , an organisation that promotes the perceived advantages of comprehensive schools in the UK. Her children attend state schools in the Camden LEA, and she is a school governor at two schools. Millar's articles appear regularly in the education supplememt of
The Guardian newspaper.Commitment to state education
She is governor of the William Ellis boys' comprehensive school and [http://www.gospeloak.camden.sch.uk Gospel Oak] primary school. She has claimed that Camden LEA is "one of the best in the country". However, at GCSE, it is not even above the England average, and well under the England average at A level. The best state school at GCSE in this LEA is a Catholic
faith school ; a type of school she disapproves of.Personal life
Her partner, and the father of her two sons (born November 1987 and July 1989) and daughter (born May 1994), is
Alastair Campbell ,Tony Blair 's former Director of Communications. Her children attended state schools in Camden LEA. They live inGospel Oak .External links
* [http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/fiona_millar/profile.html Guardian Blog profile]
* [http://www.familyandparenting.org/trustees Family and Parenting Institute]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/sunday_am/4636854.stm Andrew Marr Sunday AM January 2006]
* [http://education.guardian.co.uk/publicschools/story/0,,994595,00.html "Guardian" July 2003 article on why she would not send her children private]
* [http://education.guardian.co.uk/schools/columnist/story/0,,1721523,00.html "Guardian" March 2006 article on why she does not like selective education - the social segregation aspect]
* [http://www.hamhigh.co.uk/content/camden/hamhigh/whatson/story.aspx?brand=northlondon24&category=whatsonfeatures&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=whatson&itemid=WeED24%20Jul%202008%2016%3A48%3A25%3A990 Hampstead and Highgate Express July 2008]Video clips
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/breakfast/3720139.stm Grammar schools: right or wrong?]
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