Privatisation News Lucy September 2011

PRIVATISATION UPDATE

THE LATEST NEWS AND INFORMATION ON ACADEMIES, FREE SCHOOLS AND PRIVATISATION ISSUES FROM THE NUT’S PRIVATISATION IN EDUCATION UNIT

NUMBER 17, OCTOBER 2011

ACADEMIES CAMPAIGNS

Bournville School academy victory

Governors at Bournville School in Birmingham have postponed consideration of a proposal for the school to become an academy until September 2012, following a high profile campaign by Hands off Bournville School and the Alliance Against Birmingham Academies which had included the threat of strike action by NUT and NASUWT members. (Anti-Academies Alliance, 14.10.11)

Colley Lane governors reject academy status

Governors at Colley Lane Primary School in Dudley have voted not to proceed with plans to become an academy following a determined and energetic campaign by parents, teachers and campaigners. The head teacher and Chair of Governors had attempted to keep plans from the public when the proposal was first raised in the summer, asking Governors to treat discussions as confidential. After news leaked out about the plan, campaigners followed a twin-track approach in their efforts to convince Governors of the level of opposition to the conversion. An individual ballot was organised in which teaching staff voted overwhelmingly against the proposal. This was followed by a ballot of parents on the school gate showing 176 opposed to the academy proposal and only nine in favour. On 19 October 2011 the Chair of Governors phoned local councillor Tim Crumpton to confirm the academy plan had been shelved. The victory is particularly important as Colley Lane is the only primary school in Dudley that has shown a formal interest in moving to academy status. (Anti-Academies Alliance, 19.10.11)

Kingswinford teachers strike against academy proposal

Teachers at Kingswinford school in Dudley took strike action on 18 October 2011 against the proposal to turn their school into an academy. Fifty people joined the picket line before marching around the school. Further action is being discussed. (Anti-Academies Alliance, 21.10.11)

Haringey heads oppose forced academy conversions

NUT head teachers in Haringey have passed the following resolution against Government plans to force schools in the Borough to convert to academy status:

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 “As serving Haringey head teachers we condemn the proposals of the Secretary of State to force some of our schools to become sponsored academies. We reject this model for any of our schools since we believe that it is a totally untried and unproven way of delivering school improvement. We believe that any forced changes, which are not supported by parents, community, staff and governing bodies, spell disruption and conflict in our schools.

“We fear that schools will be forced to spend the academic year embarking upon, or fighting, this project, instead of focussing on standards and pupil outcomes. We also believe the selection of our authority and the seemingly random identification of schools has been arbitrary and politically motivated.

“We expect the local authority to end all communications with the DfE regarding sponsored academies.”

(Haringey Teachers’ Association, 17.10.11)

E-petition against Lincolnshire academy policy

A campaign has been launched against Lincolnshire County Council’s decision to encourage all schools to become academies under a trust run by the academy sponsor CfBT. Save Lincolnshire Schools, a group of residents and teachers who oppose the policy, have set up an e-petition which says that the policy represents “a privatisation of education in Lincolnshire and removes democratic control and accountability”. It calls on the Council “to implement a full and proper consultation within the county about the academies programme and the future of education in Lincolnshire.” (Spalding Guardian, 21.10.11) The petition can be accessed at: http://epetitionslincolnshire.firmstep.com/petitions/save-our-schools

ACADEMIES

Open academies

As of 1 October 2011, there were a total of 1,350 open academies:  203 academies were opened under the Labour Government.  1,147 were opened under the Coalition Government (since September 2010).  From 1 September to 1 October 2011, 50 new academies opened and 45 new academy applications were received from schools.

OPEN ACADEMIES – OCTOBER 2011

NUT Region Secondary Primary Others Total (Inc. no. of academies academies Open sponsored (converter (converter & academies & sponsored) per region) sponsored) Yorks/Midlands 133 42 6 181 48 South West 146 85 9 240 26 South East 136 26 2 164 43 North West 82 16 3 101 38

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 Northern 44 13 4 61 18 Midlands 125 21 5 151 43 London 146 38 12 196 67 Eastern 181 53 22 256 40 TOTAL 993 294 63 1,350 323 NOTE: The others includes all age, all through, middle deemed secondary, special school academies, PRUs etc.

Cost of academy conversion

Figures released in responses to parliamentary questions by Labour MP Lisa Nandy reveal that nearly £19 million has been spent by central Government on grants for academy conversions to date.

Schools Minsiter Nick Gibb confirmed that: “The Academies Act 2010 financial impact assessment identified that conversion costs could be around £75- £80,000, based on experience of the legal and associated costs of opening sponsored academies.” He also stated that: “Schools may apply to the Department to receive a one-off £25,000 conversion support grant” and that “Additional grants are also available for PFI schools.”

So far the converter grant paid out has totalled £18,642,779, but the Minister added that “this is expected to increase as more converting schools are given grants to convert”. The Minister also confirmed that there “are currently 98 full- time equivalent officials working exclusively in the Department's Academy Converter Division” in addition “to other staff in the Department who make a contribution to policy development and programme delivery related to schools converting to academy status as part of their wider role” (18.10.11: Parliamentary Questions 72102, 72104, 72146, 72147)

Higher insurance costs for new academies

An Anti-Academies Alliance (AAA) investigation suggests that schools face higher insurance premiums when they become academies. Local authority schools pay insurance as part of a block policy in order to achieve economies of scale. The recently converted schools contacted by the AAA reported that they faced increases in their premiums of between £15,000 and £64,000. Currently the additional costs are passed on to the Young People’s Learning Agency (YPLA), and not borne by the school directly, thus increasing the financial burden of the Government’s academies policy. (Anti-Academies Alliance, 20.10.11)

DfE director general named head of academy chain

The Director General for Education Standards at the DfE John Coles has been named as the new group Chief Executive of the United Church Schools Trust (UCST) and its subsidiary charity, the United Learning Trust (ULT). UCST operates 11 private schools across the UK. It established ULT in 2002 to extend its work into the state sector. ULT currently sponsors 20 academies and one city technology college. Coles, who will take up his post in the New Year, previously worked as Director of 14-19 Reform and Director General of Schools at the DfE. (Education Investor, 17.19.11)

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 Survey shows schools value local authority support

A London Councils commissioned report, The changing education environment in London – a schools’ perspective, shows that most London schools place a high value on the services, support and expertise provided by their local authority and are worried about the impact of academies and free schools. The report was based on a survey of all London schools and found that they “currently access a wide-range of services from their local authority and place a high worth on the expertise available within the local authority, with two-thirds of school leaders believing the local authority helped to raise standards and over two-thirds saying local authority support aided school decision-making.” Most schools were worried about “the anticipated decline in both the independent strategic oversight that local authorities provide and the range of support services, some of which are already disappearing”.

The report also showed opposition to the Government’s agenda to convert all schools to academy status: “Two-thirds of schools surveyed in London have either considered and rejected, or never considered becoming an Academy.” School leaders were even more strongly opposed to the idea of free schools “perceiving it as ill thought-out and undemocratic”. Schools reported deep concern that teachers in free schools do not need to be fully qualified and were also worried “about the commitment and motivations of those who were applying to run free schools”. The full report was published on 11 October and can be downloaded from the London Councils website: www.londoncouncils.gov.uk

New exclusions system pilots

The DfE has announced pilot areas for a new system for dealing with exclusions. This will see schools continuing to fund the education of pupils they permanently exclude and having the attainment of these pupils included in their overall performance measures. The decision to test the system is being seen as a response to pressure from Lib Dem councillors concerned that new freedoms for the schools converting to academies could lead to the neglect of some of the most vulnerable pupils. The Education Bill currently being considered by Parliament would replace exclusion appeals panels with review panels which will not have the power to reinstate excluded pupils. Councillor Gerald Vernon- Jackson, Leader of Local Government Liberal Democrats, said: “With new freedoms must come new responsibilities. Of course schools do not generally take exclusions lightly. Nonetheless we need to be sure that by becoming an academy and removing themselves from local strategies for dealing with excluded pupils, schools are not allowed to simply wash their hands of their most difficult pupils.” (LGA Lib Dem press release, 17.10.11)

Maintained schools outperform academies in GCSEs

Recently released figures for 2011 GCSE results show that academies do not perform as well as maintained schools overall, and that their achievements in terms of the English Baccalaureate (E-Bacc) measure are considerably worse. In all maintained schools including academies, 57.8 per cent of pupils achieved five or more GCSEs including English and maths at A*-C. The figure for academies (those that had converted by September 2012) was 49.7 per cent.

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 However, in announcing the results the DfE chose to focus instead on the slightly better percentage improvement in the 166 academies that had results for both 2010 and 2011. In these schools the percentage of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs including English and maths at A*-C rose from 40.6 per cent in 2010 to 45.9 per cent in 2011, an increase of 5.3 percentage points. This compared to a 2.6 percentage points increase in all maintained schools - from 55.2 per cent to 57.8 per cent.

The Government has claimed that these figures demonstrate the success of its academies policy. However, the 166 schools included in the data were old-style Labour academies, so-called ‘underperforming’ schools whose conversion to academy status was accompanied by considerable extra investment and support. This is more likely to explain the greater percentage increase in their GCSE results.

The DfE statement on the results also highlighted that only a fifth of pupils studied a combination of subjects that make up the E-Bacc. However, it conveniently overlooked the fact that the recent figures are much worse in academies; with only 11.6 per cent of students being entered for the E-Bacc subjects and just eight per cent passing these. Equivalent figures for all maintained schools were almost twice as high at 21.6 per cent and 15.2 per cent respectively. (DfE press release, 20.10.11)

Academies and free schools part of “ trend for non-accountability”

Richard Thomas, the chair of the Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council (AJTC) has pointed to an "explosion of challenges" to the judgments of public bodies affecting family incomes, jobs, housing and education. However, Thomas, a lawyer and former information Commissioner, has argued that the Government is actually making it more difficult for the public to challenge decisions made by the state. He cites recent measures such as the introduction of charges for employment tribunals and cuts in legal aid as examples of this and underlines that reforms in education will also exacerbate problems with accountability: "The increasing number of schools that will be outside local authority control (including academies and free schools), and which will, therefore, act as their own admission authorities, is especially troubling." (Guardian, 21.10.11)

DEVELOPMENTS IN INDIVIDUAL ACADEMIES

Academy superhead “erred” in charity returns

A school run by academy superhead Michael Wilkins failed to account for hundreds of thousands of pounds in its return to the Charities Commission according to a report by the Yorkshire Post. Outwood Grange school paid £315,000 into its charity fund in 2007/08 but told the Charity Commission its income was just £41. Subsequently, £91,689 of the amount paid into the charity’s account was paid to Mr Wilkins’ personal consultancy.

Mr Wilkins, publicly championed by Michael Gove as an outstanding school leader, has seen his personal income increase dramatically since embarking on a series of lucrative contracts to provide support to struggling schools through the National Leaders of Education (NLE) programme. This included a 2007

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 agreement established by Wilkins and Outwood Grange to provide support to Harrogate High School at a cost of £750,000.

It appears that the school has been using the charity account as a normal business account. In addition to the amount paid to Mr Wilkins’ personal consultancy, a further £196,032 from the charity account was spent on reimbursing the college budget for staff costs, payments to outside consultants, hotels, catering, travel and other miscellaneous expenses.

The school said that the misreporting was “the result of a genuine misunderstanding rather than any impropriety or concealment” and that it would set the record straight when filing the latest set of accounts. However, currently these are 256 days overdue with the Charity Commission. (Yorkshire Post, 16.10.11)

Mossbourne to open new Academy in Hackney

The Government has approved plans for the Mossbourne Academy in Hackney to open a new school in September 2014. The school will be based in Victoria Park on the site of the former Cardinal Pole Lower School. The local authority is providing the site, with funding for refurbishment paid by the Department for Education. At capacity the school will provide 800 places. Earlier this month the Principal of Mossbourne Academy Sir Michael Wilshaw was named as Michael Gove’s preferred choice for the role of Ofsted Chief. (DfE press release, 07.10.11)

FREE SCHOOLS

Further 55 free schools approved

The DfE has announced that 55 applications from the 281 received under the Wave 2 free school process have been approved to pre-opening stage. These are in addition to the 24 Wave 1 free schools that opened in September 2011 and the eight remaining Wave 1 free schools that are due to open over the next 12 months.

Sixty of the 63 free schools still to open are aiming to open in 2012, and three in 2013. Twenty-one are primary schools, 33 are secondary schools, eight are all- through schools and one will cater for ages 16-19. The regional breakdown of the 63 schools is as follows:

 East Midlands – 2  East of England – 10  London – 22  North East – 3  North West – 6  South East – 6  South West – 4  West Midlands – 4  Yorkshire and Humber – 6.

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 Some alternative provision free schools, special free schools and studio schools are also likely to be approved later this year. The full list of proposals approved so far can be accessed on the DfE website: www.education.gov.uk/b00197715/free-schools-2012

Private company and academy involvement with free schools

Of the 63 free schools due to open in 2012-2013, the Government has claimed that “33 are being set up by local groups, including teachers, parents, charities and community groups.” This means that the remaining 30 schools do no belong in this category.

NUT research reveals the following links between academy chains, existing academies and schools from the private sector.

Three of the successful free school proposals were put forward by academy chain sponsors:  Bolingbroke Academy was proposed by Absolute Return for Kids (ARK) which runs eight academies and two free schools.  Harris Primary Free School Peckham was proposed by the Harris Federation, a multi-academy sponsor based in south London which runs 13 academy schools.  Haringey Free School is an E-Act proposal. E-Act runs 13 academies nationwide and one free school.

Three successful free school proposals came from organisations that already run more than one academy:  Future Schools Trust, which runs both New Line Learning Academy and the Cornwallis Academy in Maidstone, has approval for a primary free school – The Tiger School - to be located on the site of the New Line Learning Academy.  Gateway Primary Free School is a proposal by Gateway Academy in Thurrock, part of the Ormiston Trust academy chain.

Three successful free school proposals were made by existing academies:  Dixons City Academy in Bradford has had proposals for a primary and a secondary free school in the city approved: Dixons City Free Primary and Dixons City Free School.  Cuckoo Hall Academy in Enfield opened a free school in the Borough in September 2011 (Woodpecker Hall Academy) and has now had its proposal for a further primary free school approved - Kingfisher Hall Primary Academy.

Six successful free school proposals involve academy sponsors as partners:  Greenwood Dale Foundation Trust, a multi-academy sponsor in the East Midlands with academies including Nottingham Academy - the UK’s biggest school - as well as Skegness Academy and Weston Favell Academy in Northampton, has been selected to partner Peterborough City Council in the planned City of Peterborough Academy (free school).  School Partnership Trust, sponsor of six academies, has been selected to run Barwick’s Own 2nd Secondary School (BO2SS).

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011  Russel Education Trust, which is involved in running the Bristol Free School, would run Becket Keys Church School in Essex.  CfBT, which is already running one of the first free schools - All Saints Junior School in Reading – has also partnered and been involved in applications for the West of Wokingham Secondary Free School, and EN3 Primary School in Enfield.  Brooke Weston Partnership, a partnership of academy schools run by an executive principal, is working in collaboration with Tresham College of Further and Higher Education to establish a Corby Free School in Northamptonshire.

Five successful free school proposals were made by, or are being put forward in partnership with, organisations that run schools in the private sector:  The Seckford Foundation, a charitable trust that runs the private Woodbridge School in Suffolk, is partnering both The Beccles Free School and Saxmundham Free School groups.  Constable Educational Trust (CET) has had both its recent proposals for primary free schools in London approved. They will be located in Westminster and Tower Hamlets. CET runs an independent school, the Moat School, which is “dedicated to the teaching of children with Specific Learning Difficulties”. The new free schools will not, however, be special schools.  The I-Foundation already has one open free school in Leicester and runs other independent Hindu Schools. It has had a proposal for a second free school approved. St Chaitanya's School will be an all-through Hindu ethos school in Barnet/Harrow.

Two approved free schools are private schools that will transfer to the state sector:  St Michael's Catholic Secondary School in Truro currently charges up to £3,600 per year but will abolish these fees when it becomes a free school.  The private Grindon Hall Christian School plans to establish itself as an all-through Christian ethos free school.

NSN not happy with free school numbers

Rachel Wolf, director of the New Schools Network (NSN), the organisation appointed by the Government to support free school applications, has indicated that she is disappointed with the number of applications being approved by the DfE. Whilst she welcomed the announcement that a further 55 free school applications were approved in October she also said: “We believe too few have been approved. Based on the caliber and volume of proposals we have seen, we think that the DfE has been over cautious in some of their assessments. As the policy develops we hope to see a significant increase in the number of groups being approved." The comments suggest that the Government’s flagship policy is hampered by funding constraints which Michael Gove has so far denied. (NSN press release, 10.10.11)

Religious character of Wave 2 free schools

Eleven of the 55 approved Wave 2 free schools have a religious character. They include three Anglican schools, a Catholic school, three further Christian schools,

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 a Jewish school, a Sikh school, a Hindu school and a Muslim school. Whilst this represents a lower proportion of faith free schools than were approved under Wave 1, the British Humanist Association has maintained that “serious concerns must be raised about the diversity of the free schools, with some being more evangelical than previously possible.” (British Humanist Association press release 10.10.11)

Over £10 million spent on free schools

NUT analysis of payments made by the DfE and Partnership for Schools (PfS) shows that, at a minimum, over £10 million was spent on free schools from April 2010 to 31 August 2011. Specific free school projects received almost £3 million in the form of capital and set up costs. Further payments totalling almost £1 million were made by the DfE in relation to the free schools agenda, consisting of payments to the New Schools Network and other service costs. Meanwhile over £6 million was also transferred by PfS to property and law firms supporting free school groups.

NSN awarded further £100,000

The New Schools Network (NSN) is to receive a further £100,000 for providing pre-application support to groups interested in opening free schools. The group, set up by Rachel Wolf, a former advisor to Michael Gove and Boris Johnson, succeeded in a competitive bidding process announced on the DfE website. A grant of £400,000 will be awarded for the remainder of this financial year (2011- 12), with a further maximum of £650,000 being paid to the organisation in 2012- 13.

NSN was originally appointed in June 2010 when it was the only organisation invited to apply for the original £500,000 grant. A statement on the DfE website claims that over 40 groups asked for information about how to bid for the grant this year but only two applied. According to the DfE, “NSN was judged to have submitted the strongest bid by a clear margin.” (DfE press release, 19.10.11)

Free schools framework expected

It is understood that the DfE is finalising a new framework for the procurement of contractors to work on free school projects. The industry journal Education Investor reports that “the new framework will allow free school groups to procure project managers to help them bring new schools projects to fruition, without the expense of going through the full procurement process required under EU law.” It will work on a similar basis to the academy model with the Government effectively carrying out the early stages of procurement, screening companies in order to draw up a list of suitable potential contractors. An announcement on the framework is expected within weeks. (Education Investor, 12.10.11)

Twigg double U-turn on free schools

The new shadow Minister for Education Stephen Twigg has been accused of a double U-turn over free schools policy. Conservative politicians and commentators supportive of free schools seized on comments he made in an interview with the Liverpool Daily Post where he appeared to reverse previous

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 Labour party policy. Twigg said: "On free schools, I am saying that we need to apply a set of tests, that we are not going to take an absolute policy of opposing them.” Twigg indicated that the tests would be: “will the school raise standards for pupils and parents, will it contribute to a narrowing of the achievement gap between rich and poor, and what is the wider impact of that school?"

Twigg has subsequently published an article in the Guardian in which he denied endorsing the free schools policy, saying that: “If Labour were in government, we would not have chosen this path.” He also pointed to “major problems with this government’s free schools policy,” adding that “There is no account of how free schools will respond to local demand, or join up with existing schools. And the policy risks distracting from the hard work of improving the vast majority of schools”. (Guardian, 15.10.11 and 18.10.11)

Bradford council forced to cooperate with free schools

Bradford City Council has said that it will be forced to co-operate with free schools opening in the city because it does not have enough money to set up its own new schools. The city is due to have up to five free schools, with two having opened in September 2011 and a further three being approved to open in 2012 or beyond. This means the city will have the highest concentration of free schools outside London. Ian Greenwood, leader of Bradford City Council, said: "We disagree with the idea of public money being spent on any school over which we have no influence at all as the education authority.” However, he added that a lack of government funding meant that the council would need to seek accommodation with free schools: “We need new schools but there's no way we can afford to build them ourselves under current government funding so we will co-operate with the groups setting up the free schools to get the best deal we can." (BBC News, 21.10.11)

Chuckle Brother free school approved

Rotherham Central Free School backed by Barry Elliot - one half of children’s comedy duo “the Chuckle Brothers” – is among the 55 Wave 2 free schools recently approved by the DfE. Elliot’s daughter-in-law Charlotte Blencowe, a former Conservative council candidate, is the school’s Principal Designate. Local Labour MP Denis MacShane has slammed the decision, pointing out that school roles are actually dropping in the area. The council predicts that the potential loss of 500 pupils caused by a new school will have a severe effect on other local schools, which achieved their best ever GCSE results in the summer. The proposed location for the school is a disused B&Q site close to the busy Centenary Way which MacShane has pointed out “would be dangerous for pupils” who would be “exposed to petrol and diesel fumes from the busy roads serving all the factories in the area.” (www.denismacshane.com 11.10.11)

Brentwood free school plan creates tension

Local teachers have expressed their frustration at the DfE’s decision to approve plans for a new free school in Brentwood, Essex. Becket Keys Church School would be built on the site of the former Sawyers Hall College which was closed because there were not enough children to fill the school. Mike O'Sullivan, the head of a local school, St Martin's, said: "The closure of Sawyers Hall is

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011 happening as a result of a proper consultation which recognised a surplus of places within the town and the opening of Becket Keys will create a similar situation at a time when resources are scarce." He added: "All of the existing schools have significantly above average attainment, which is not the case in neighbouring boroughs, in Basildon and Harlow." (Brentwood Gazette, 17.10.11)

Free schools could exacerbate asbestos-management shortcomings

Michael Lees of the Asbestos in Schools (AiS) campaign has highlighted serious flaws in the Government’s approach to providing training for governors and teachers on asbestos in schools. Lees welcomed the creation of a new website designed to address a lack of training and awareness around asbestos in schools but said that the facility was already beset by funding problems. He also called for more resources to be deployed to improve awareness of asbestos among all teachers and school staff and for it to be mandatory for school governors and head teachers to be properly trained in asbestos management.

Lees’ comments were made in light of his own analysis of HSE enforcement action on asbestos management issues against schools outside local authority control. Between November 2010 and July this year, HSE inspectors visited 158 schools, of which 30 (9 per cent) warranted enforcement notices. Lees pointed out that the problem could be exacerbated in free schools and some academies “as most parents and governors do not have the training and experience to manage asbestos, but are taking on the legal and practical responsibilities to do just that. Unless training is made mandatory for governors, head teachers and all staff, it is inevitable that this problem will worsen over the coming years.” (Safety and Health Practitioner, 21.10.11)

Free school pupil sent home for short haircut

Kai Frizzle, an eleven-year old pupil at Toby Young’s West London Free School, was sent home for having a haircut that was three millimeters too short. The school’s rules state boys' hair must be no shorter than a number two and no longer than collar length. Kai, who was sent home on Monday and taught in isolation on Tuesday, plays for the rugby team and is vice-president of the school council. His hair is a number two on top and 1.5 at the sides. Kai’s mother Tania Scott likened his haircut to that of the soldier Johnson Beharry, who won a Victoria Cross for his service in Iraq. She complained that the school had failed to understand that African-Caribbean hair needs to be kept short saying "When afro hair gets longer it is harder to manage. It gets dry and picks up lots of dirt and foreign objects. Kai does sport five times a week, and when his hair's wet it's very hard to control. Most black boys or adults have their hair in plaits or a very short hairstyle.” Young has defended the school’s decision saying: “My view is that the way to get the best out of every pupil is to hold them to the same high standard. Not to make an exception – regardless of ethnicity and background. One of the problems in some state schools is that African-Caribbean boys are held to a lower standard. That's one of the reasons they under-achieve." (Guardian, 21.10.11)

Privatisation Update Number 17, October 2011