By admitting that she sends her daughter to a private school, Janet Murray – one of the Guardian‘s top education journalists, has triggered plenty of hand-wringing today.  Murray tells of her difficulty at walking her five-year-old walk to school in a “straw blazer and boater”, comparing herself to that paragon of virtue Diane Abbott for putting her child before her career. Annoying when those pesky lefty ideals get in the way of reality eh?

The education world is certainly surprised by Murray’s Damascene conversion and she’s getting it in the neck from the left and the right. Murray ends her mea culpa to the left by passionately imploring:

“I plan to send Katy to a state secondary if I can, but if I find myself dissatisfied with what is on offer, I will go private again. Until local schools meet families’ needs and cater for each individual child, can you blame people for putting their hand in their pocket?“

Welcome to the real world Janet.