FORMAL education should give children the chance to fulfil their full potential.

Many times it is seen as mere training for a job. Creative talent should be encouraged both for school students and higher education students.

Education is seen as a need for employment to give our children better opportunities for real success. Everyone needs the basic skills of literacy and numeracy but to develop our practical, creative and social abilities is important.

There is too much emphasis on these so-called ''league tables'' and form filling, giving our children more stress and work. Teachers have longer working hours than ever before, sometimes 50 hours a week on average.

School class sizes have risen since this Government came to power. How can teachers be expected to cope with larger class sizes, tight budgets and extra stress, plus more paperwork and still give our children the best?

The backlog of many repairs to school buildings is estimated at about £20 billion and it is rising.

The levels of student debt deters older people and those from poorer backgrounds from going to university. The amount of money people pay throughout their lives towards the education system should be more than enough to cover repairs to school buildings.

Education, education, education. Blair said: "Every child would have a lap-top computer." This was only four years ago.

The Labour Party has failed on promises made four years ago and has failed our children on so many issues, including closing local schools, causing chaos and using Redditch as a testing ground.