Nicky Morgan to write book for John Catt

Former education secretary Nicky Morgan is to write a book for indie John Catt Educational on character education.

The publisher has acquired worldwide rights in Taught, Not Caught: Educating for 21st Century Character and will publish in early September.

Morgan was education secretary from 2014-16. In her time in office, she announced a £3.5m programme to be spent promoting classes and extra-curricular activities that build "grit" and "resilience" in a generation of schoolchildren. In Taught, Not Caught, she will reveal why she believes that building characterful children has a positive impact on academic attainment.

Morgan was moved from Cabinet in a reshuffle by the new prime minist Theresa May, then demoted to the backbenches and disinvited from a meeting about Brexit at Number 10 after she expressed concerns over May's £1,000 leather trousers. She is currently campaigning for re-election as an MP for her seat in Loughborough.

Morgan said: "I’ve had the privilege of holding one of the best jobs in the UK cabinet. As education secretary I visited many schools and could see those schools where the headteacher and all the staff were building not just knowledgeable young people but also engaged and confident pupils.

 "Hearing their stories, looking at the work they’ve done to promote character education and identify the values they want to embed in their schools and seeing how positive they are about this area of their school life has confirmed to me that focusing on character sits alongside gaining knowledge.  In fact, the former helps the latter.  The generosity of the schools enables me to capture key examples and bring character education to life. 

"The point is to set young people up with the key traits they can call on when things don’t work out and they are faced with the unexpected.  I’ve had my own taste of needing to demonstrate be resilient in the past year.  All politicians know that their careers are likely to end in failure – or, at least, to leave office at a time not necessarily of their choosing.  But my ministerial career fell apart a bit earlier than I’d expected.  There is nothing so ‘ex' as an ‘ex-minister'.  Continuing to be an MP is a hugely satisfying as well as challenging part of most ex-minister’s lives but as with any major life change it takes time to adjust and to find the next goal in life.”

The acquisition is the latest in a series of newsy acquisitions by the publisher. John Catt m.d. Alex Sharratt described the signing as "another feather in the cap for John Catt Educational", saying the company is turning its attention to international markets after having established "a solid and expanding" base in the UK.