Education Secretary Estelle Morris today hailed Bradford's newly-privatised education service for giving a new start to the city after the riots.

She welcomed the deal struck by Bradford Council with Serco QAA which on Monday formally took over the local education authority and over 1,000 Council staff.

It will earn £360million over ten years running the district's education services, though bonus payments of between £1m and £2m per year will depend on pupils meeting targets.

The Education Secretary said: "The district has been shaken by the recent disturbances. I believe this partnership is a signal to parents, teachers and governors that the Council is serious about putting education at the heart of Bradford's regeneration.

"Serco is faced with demanding performance targets and the emphasis will be on them to deliver rapid improvements in educational attainment across the board and the district. I welcome this new partnership.

"The people of Bradford deserve no less."

The challenge Serco faces is to bring about a rapid improvement in standards of achievement for the district's 88,000 pupils. The overall aim is to see pupils reaching at least the national average levels by 2005.

Paul Brett, operations director for Serco, said: "We are confident we can meet targets, but we also recognise education and schools have been through a period of upheaval. For that reason, we will be emphasising the need for stability. However, people will quickly begin to see services becoming more customer-focused and readily accessible."

Ian Stewart, chief executive of Bradford Council, acknowledged the radical change was traumatic. "However, the partnership represents a tremendous opportunity for schools, for staff and for children," he said.

and the district as a whole."

Schools section