HEREFORDSHIRE'S education chiefs have chalked up a morale boost on the eve of an all-important Ofsted inspection, writes BILL TANNER.

A lukewarm response to the concept of county schools opting out of council control comes with praise for existing operations.

Call for councils to be stripped of the powers they have had over schools for nearly a century were made during the recent annual conference of the National Association of Head Teachers.

David Hart, the general secretary, said local education authorities should continue to be responsible for children with special needs, but their statutory role should otherwise be confined to allocating places and running school buses. Other LEA functions could be handed over to private contractors.

Ian Foster, head of Leominster Junior School, attended the conference as an area representative.

Mr Foster said he could 'well understand' the temptation to opt out in areas where pupils paid the price of an authority's incompetence. But Herefordshire's education officials 'generally did a good job'.

"The authority works on areas of improvement and does listen to heads," he said.

Carol Clapham of watchdog body Hereford & Worcester Education Co-ordination Group also spoke up in support.

Parents, she said, had been particularly impressed with the 'human face' of the LEA.

"We wouldn't want a complete opt- out because what we've got works well."

Other opinions expressed ranged from schools getting greater flexibility in fixing budgets to contingency plans for country classes who could not afford an opt out.

Dr Eddie Oram, the county's director of education, said Herefordshire Council was not aware of any particular proposals for change.

The council, he said, believed local authorities had an important function in providing support to both schools and parents.

Herefordshire LEA is preparing for an Ofsted inspection of its own in the near future.