Teachers delight as Gove leaves education

But they said they were still concerned that some of the policies they have protested against were still in place.

His move comes less than a week after schools closed because of a strike by the National Union of Teachers in a row over pay, conditions, working hours and concerns about the new wave of free schools and academies.

Mr Gove has been replaced by Nicky Morgan, who moves to education from the Treasury.

Jenny Battell of the Wolverhampton branch of the NASUWT, said: "Gove has gone but teachers will be putting the champagne on ice.

"There will be no change of policy, possibly just a gentler approach."

Retired Pendeford High School teacher Sam Bechler, a former Wolverhampton branch secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) union, said: "It will not be easy to undo what has been done. If you remove education from the local authority you are heading for trouble.

"Westminster has no idea what goes on on the ground.

"Each areas has its own different problems.

"Birmingham is different to Wolverhampton."

Mr Gove's detractors have accused him of being antagonistic and failing to engage with the teaching profession, as well as attempting to change too much, too quickly.

He has never been afraid to court controversy, insisting that rapid change is needed to ensure that all children get a decent education, regardless of their background.

He has also, on more than one occasion, dismissed his critics as 'the blob'.

As news of his departure was announced, one union leader suggested that the move showed that Mr Gove had become "more of a liability than an asset", whilst another warned his successor not to make more changes to England's schools system.

Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the ATL, said: "David Cameron has, belatedly, realised that Michael Gove's ideological drive is no substitute for measured, pragmatic reform of the education system.

"Time after time he has chased newspaper headlines rather than engage with teachers. The dismantling of the structures which support schools, the antagonism which he displayed to the teaching profession and the increasing evidence of chaos in the bodies he established - in particular the Education Funding Agency - has led Cameron to one conclusion - Gove is more of a liability than an asset.

"Successful education systems value the views of the teaching profession, which Gove insulted when he called them 'the blob'. ATL looks forward to a more constructive relationship with his successor, Nicky Morgan."