School officials skeptical over plans of an academy-based education system

CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on the Darlington & Stockton Times

As part of a White Paper released earlier this year, the government outlined its plan for a fully academised education system – but school leaders and governors in North Yorkshire have raised concerns over the government’s proposal to transfer the running of schools from councils to academies.

A number of senior school officials have questioned the lack of clarity and evidence of the benefits of joining a trust; North Yorkshire school leaders, at a County Council executive meeting in July, reported that many of the county’s schools do not wish to become academies, though the report states that school leaders were generally in agreement that the council should help co-ordinate the transfer and avoid unnecessary isolation of individual schools and education officers are recommending the authority’s executive approve developing a co-ordinated strategy toward full academisation.

The government has justified the change by insisting that multi-academy trusts transform outcomes for pupils and are more financially secure. Since the Department for Education published its single trust-led system plan for 2030, several potential problems have been highlighted; for example, there are concerns that some schools lack the ambition to form or join trusts in their areas. 

Concerns as to the rising costs and small budgets have also been raised by school leaders, who are worried that financial viability may prevent some schools’ conversion to academies. The fear is also that a few, more financially strong, schools could be cherry-picked by trusts, leaving others behind and struggling.