I can’t find any good in the Government’s obsession with promoting these. They are all about worsening divisions in our society, diluting the role of Councils in education, centralising power with the Secretary of State, and ensuring there is no local accountability. To make life even more difficult for Schools that want to “remain with the Council” Gove insists they have to offer the National Curriculum whilst Free Schools /Academies don’t. I’m convinced the ultimate aim is to privatise education.
Read on Sunday about a proposal for a 11 -18 Free School in an area of London where there is a major shortage of Primary School places. So it won’t solve the local problem, just make existing 11-18 Schools less viable as they compete for students. Horrified too to hear of 2 more Free School proposals for Norfolk. Schools need to work together, not against each other and be part of their communities.
