England’s school system needs “constant attention and constant pressure” from government to “drive it forward”, the education secretary has said. In a message to underperforming schools and academy trusts, Kit Malthouse warned there was “nothing quite as persistent as people hanging on to mediocrity”. The new education secretary did not announce any new policies. Instead, he used his address to the Conservative Party conference this evening to promise his team would be 鈥渕uch more assertive about intervention and standards鈥� in schools. It further demonstrates ministers’ desire to take a more interventionist position on school standards, reversing the freedoms that the original expansion of the academies programme was supposed to achieve. Boris Johnson’s government was accused of a “power grab” over schools with the first iteration of their . The legislation may now be under review by Liz Truss, but ministers signalled this week they would not change direction. ‘An awful lot more to do’ Malthouse said his team would want to celebrate the Conservatives鈥� 鈥渟tory of success鈥� over the next two years 鈥渂ut also reflect on the fact that there鈥檚 an awful lot more to do鈥�. He said the 鈥渧ast franchise鈥� of England鈥檚 education system needed 鈥渃onstant attention and constant pressure from us as demanding friends to drive it forward鈥�. The government wants to be 鈥渕uch more assertive about intervention and standards鈥� in schools, he said. 鈥淭hat means that we need to be much more front foot about talking to schools about what they can achieve. We鈥檝e seen as I said vast progress in lots of schools, but there are still pockets that need our attention. 鈥淎nd we need to reflect on the fact that there’s nothing quite as persistent as people hanging on to mediocrity. Us finding, challenging, working with teachers, bringing all schools up to the standard of the best will be a key part of our mission.鈥� But Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said teachers “deserve better than rhetoric about ‘intervention’ at this critical juncture”. “As more children and communities become poorer and parental anxiety about the cost of living rises, schools will do everything they can realistically do to support families. “But ministers are overlooking the links between poverty and barriers to education- and leaving the expectation on schools to respond to the huge social challenge facing schools this autumn.” ‘Unashamedly interventionist’ Malthouse added that children 鈥済row up in a blink鈥�, and said ministers needed to be 鈥減atient and demanding on behalf of all those kids that we look after鈥�. The education secretary was joined onstage by his four other education ministers Jonathan Gullis, Kelly Tolhurst, Baroness Barran and Andrea Jenkyns, who each outlined the priorities for their briefs. Jonathan Gullis, the schools minister, said the government was “not going to be ashamed to the interventionist to make sure children have every opportunity”. He pledged to “champion teachers” and work with unions “to make sure that we are out there looking at how we can improve recruitment and retention”. Barran focused on the government’s existing policy of intervening in failing schools and academies. With the schools bill on ice, ministers are reliant on existing powers and proposals for stronger intervention in schools rated ‘requires improvement’ twice in a row. She said she was “particularly focused on is those 700,000 children who are in schools that are failing and have failed for some time”.