DfE to focus academisation on 'struggling' schools

Greening told the education select committee today that the Department for Education will prioritise converting schools whose attainment levels need to be raised.

However, the department will retain its ambition for all schools to convert to academies.

"I do want to see all schools become academies, but our focus has got to be on schools struggling and not doing well enough for children at the moment," Greening told the committee hearing.

"Our hope and expectation is that schools will steadily want to take advantage of the benefits that academies can bring, but our focus will be on the schools where we feel standards need to be raised and need to do a better job at delivering attainment and progress for children."

Greening's emphasis on turning struggling schools into academies calls into question plans announced in May by former Education Secretary Nicky Morgan to force all schools in some areas to convert.

In revisions to the Educational Excellence Everywhere white paper, the DfE outlined plans to convert schools "where it is clear that the local authority can no longer viably support its remaining schools because a critical mass of schools in that area has converted".

Measures in the original white paper, published in March, would have seen every school become an academy by 2022, but this was watered down so that those rated as "good" or "outstanding" by Ofsted would not be compelled.

Richard Watts, chair of the Local Government Association's children and young people board, said: "We are also pleased that the Government is considering abandoning plans to force good and outstanding schools to convert to academies against their wishes. We have been strong in our opposition to all forced academisation, and this opposition has been echoed by MPs, teachers and parents and backed up by evidence.
 
"Our recent analysis of the grades achieved by all schools under the more rigorous Ofsted inspection framework proved that 81 per cent of council-maintained schools are rated as ‘good, or ‘outstanding,, compared to 73 per cent of academies and 79 per cent of free schools. It is right that these schools should not be forced down the academy route unless they make that decision themselves."

The white paper also set out the government's intention to remove elected parents from school governing bodies, but Greening said she will not be going forward with these plans.

"I don't think we should be saying multi-academy trusts don't need to have parents," she told the committee.

"Parent governors play a vital role. I think part of the way we can ensure schools are doing a good job for delivering for children who are disadvantaged is getting parents more involved."

Greening was appointed in July, following a cabinet reshuffle by Theresa May when she succeeded David Cameron as Prime Minister.

A spokesman from the DfE told CYP NOW any changes to government policy on academies will be announced in due course.