For your purpose he should be relevant. Green and the idealists (and later 'New Liberals') were linked to the broader programme of social reform. They called for state intervention in 'private' matters such as education (along with restriction of alchohol sales and employment contracts) in an effort to alleviate the misery of the poor brought on by industrialization in the 18/19c. This is a good scholarly website: http://www.history.ac.uk/ihr/Focus/Victorians/index.html

Here are some references: Leighton, D., The Greenian Moment (2004).
Ritcher, M., The Politics of Conscience: T.H. Green and his Age(1964). Vincent A. & Plant R., Philosophy Politics and Citizenship: The Life and Thought of the British Idealists (1984).

Hi Joyce. I'm not sure if this helps but you may want to look at the work of T.H. Green (and other British Idealists) who campaigned to make education available to the poor during this period. Green was a member of the Oxford School Board from 1874 and he stood in opposition to Oxford Conservatives by supporting free unsectarian primary education (Leighton, The Greenian Movement). But he was a supporter of educational reform from his time as a student at Oxford. This may not be directly relevant to the 1870 Act as it was only a tentative measure, but they were certainly influential in pushing for social reform. Hope this helps!