Specialist Schools and Academies Trust

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Janet Downs: Policy Exchange report (part one) confirms three qualities of successful school systems but these qualities aren’t exclusive to academies.

The three qualities of successful school systems are “collaboration, autonomy and freedom” according to a Policy Exchange report, “Competition meets collaboration”, by James O’Shaughnessy, which proposes that schools which are judged to be requiring improvement should become academies and, if that doesn’t raise outcomes, then they should be handed over to for-profit education providers. But collaboration doesn’t need academy status – ... read more and comment →

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Janet Downs: Grade fiasco won’t go away

If the Government thinks that Ofqual’s report upholding this year’s GCSE English grades will dampen the anger then it should read TES for 31 August 2012. I’m a long-time TES reader and don’t remember the paper ever seething with such rage. The editorial* said that “shiftng a grade boundary a couple of kilometres at the eleventh hour does not in any ... read more and comment →

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Latest comment by agov: "So, Ricky, that's a 'don't know' then. Another thing you probably don't know is how much greater a % would be siphoned off in 'management' fees by these 'charities' (not least the ones connected to aggressive tax-avoidance havens like the Caymans) ......"

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Janet Downs: We did it for the money. Survey reveals extra finances were the most popular reason for academy conversion.

“78 per cent of schools chose to become an academy in part because of a perception that they would receive additional funding.” This was revealed in a survey conducted by the Schools Network and Reform. When pushed, however, slightly less than four in ten heads said money was the main reason. Nevertheless, it was the most popular incentive. The remaining ... read more and comment →

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Latest comment by Academisation and the Neglect of Sick Children | Think Left: "[...] Financial sweeteners were offered (1) to encourage the Academisation process, such that the cost of the process exceeded original estimates by £ 1Bn. 2, 3  Schools resisting  the process have been forced to convert. Schools have reported unreasonable, disappointing and unexpected ......"

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Janet Downs: Audit Office raised concerns about conflict of interest between academies and sponsors

Some academies felt they were being pressurised into buying central services from their sponsors, so said the National Audit Office in 2010. NAO wrote: “Sponsors have strong influence on the running of academies, which brings both benefits and risks to value for money. A conflict of interest may arise where they provide paid services to the academy: a quarter of academies ... read more and comment →

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