THE chief executive of Worcestershire County Council has refused to criticise a pledge by David Cameron to end local authority control of schools.

Clare Marchant has come under pressure from County Hall's opposition Labour group to intervene after the Prime Minister suggested all schools should become academies by 2020.

But Ms Marchant insists the policy is "not really a question" for her to answer.

During the Conservative Party conference in September, Mr Cameron said councils running schools would "soon be a thing of the past" by the end of this parliament.

The move would have a drastic impact on Worcestershire, where there are 161 state schools and 61 academies or free schools, a number which is growing by the year.

Labour Councillor Joseph Baker said he fears a "lowering of standards" if the Prime Minister gets his away, with his group urging the authority to object.

Ms Marchant said she has no intention of entering into the debate, insisting her focus is on driving up standards further.

She has also pointed to the fact nine out of 10 county schools are currently rated either 'good' or 'outstanding' by Ofsted, saying the council will not rest on its laurels.

"It's not really a question for me to answer, in terms of the policy of conversion of schools to academies," she said.

"What I can say is that we work with all schools very closely - not just in terms of maintaining the levels they are at, but also the 'gap' between the lowest achievers and the highest achievers."

She added: "I think there is something about not sitting on our laurels in education, about understanding yes we have good schools, yes we have good Ofsted ratings, but we need to work more on that gap."

She said the Government's policy on switching them all to academies was "a separate issue" for the politicians to answer.

Councillor Baker says he is concerned about the policy, echoing fears first expressed by his Labour group last month.

"The figures we have for our young people and young adults and the achievements they are making at high schools are commendable to the teachers and staff we have working in our schools," he said.

"What I'd like to know is, how are we going to keep them in the state-run system and not turn them into academies and risk lowering their achievements."

The council's Conservative leadership has argued that many Worcestershire schools have secured far greater investment after becoming academies, saying it is not against the policy.

* See what the Tory leadership said about this last month HERE.