Let's talk as a community about the future of our Brent primary schools

The Government has issued an Education White Paper that expresses the intention that all schools should be academies by 2030.  In Brent most secondary schools have academised, either as a stand-alone conversion from a local authority school or becoming part of an academy chain or multi-academy trust (MAT).  They are directly funded by the Department for Education and no longer under local authority oversight. This removes local democratic accountability and in some cases reduces the role of local governing bodies and parental representation.

The story with  primary schools is quite different with only a handful academised, often as a result of 'forced academisation' when the school has a poor Ofsted report. Readers will remember the battle over the forced academisation of Gladstone Park Primary School. The low number of voluntary primary academisations has frustrated the idealogues in the Conservative Party.

The position of special schools is mixed but there was a major battle over  The Village School in Kingsbury.

Recently  Brent primary schools have formed informal geographical clusters that cooperate and support each other, sharing expertise and able to underatke moderation of pupil work. 

One potential way of keeping some sort of local authority input and accountability would be for the local authority (Brent Council) to itself become a MAT or for the clusters to form a network of several MATs. This would require new powers and thus legislation and schools have been urged not to panic and rush to academisation for fear of being left behind, but to stand back and research the potential opportunities as well as the pitfalls.  2030 is some distance away. 

Like the NHS schools have much to deal with in the Covid era and all the disruption involved, without the diversion of a massive reorganisation,

Sustained cross-party opposition to the proposal could lead to a government u-turn and we could have an entirely new government at the next General Election.

Brent Green Party would like to see a full public debate in the borough about future organisation involving schools, education unions, governors, parents and pupils to produce a vision that would address the specific needs of our young people, families and the wider community.

Meanwhile the Anti-Academies Alliance have produced the briefing below for the Easter education union conferences that considers academisation and the wider issues in some depth.