"If every school did the same as us...." another step forward
Parents
have called for a public enquiry into bullying behaviour endemic in forced
academisation of school. They state that that parents from schools that have experienced bullying from the DfE are fighting back
and launching a new campaign group - Parents Against Forced Academies (PAFA).
This arose from the frustration parents feel at not being listened to on key decisions
about the handing of our schools by rich businessmen running academy chains.
PAFA was born at a half
term meeting by parents at several primary schools across London, where they
decided to join forces in condemning what they perceive as extreme bullying
tactics by Michael Gove and his academy brokers.
Governors and head
teachers who resist forced academy are routinely threatened with the sack and
in some cases this has been carried through Interim Executive Boards with no
previous knowledge of the school or the community Fake consultations with parents are being run after decisions
have already been made and controlled by the academy chains who stand to gain
most. The conflict of interest could not be clearer. In the case of Downhills
Primary School in Haringey 94% of those taking part in the consultation did not
want the school to become an academy sponsored by the Harris Federation. On the
same day the consultation was published and available to parents the Secretary
of State handed the school over to the Harris Federation. The DfE had funded
the consultation to the tune of £50,000 of public money.
Parents are repeatedly
being met with rude, abrupt, dismissive and patronising responses from DfE
officials when they make a reasoned case for proper consultation and genuine
choice over their school’s future. The behaviour of the DfE contravenes key
principles set out in the government’s own legal advice and other government
agendas such as localism, Big Society and community rights. When making a
decision that will impact on the general public, Civil Service Departments are
required to meet a series of tests in measuring the lawfulness of an exercise
of public law, PAFA believes that Michael Gove is ignoring these basic rules of
public life. It is more like dictatorship than democracy.
Parents from schools
facing forced academy conversion are joining forces to call for a public
enquiry into the decisions made about our schools behind closed doors and the
privatisation of our education system by stealth.
‘We know that we are not alone in resisting the forcible academisation of our
school,’ says Maria Bache, 40, an HR manager for a media group who has two
children at Gladstone Primary in NW London. ‘We stand united with other schools
across the country in publicising the unfair treatment we are being subjected
to by the DfE.’
Another
Gladstone parent, Zaman Wong, said : ‘The decision by the DfE to impose academy
status on Gladstone Park Primary is a grossly disproportionate course of
action, ignoring the many strengths of our school identified by Ofsted,
the indisputable achievements of our pupils and the wishes of the parents.
The entire process has been unjustified and artificially rushed, with a
complete lack of transparency or any consultation with parents and governors’
The father of two children at the school, one in Reception, concluded: ‘Even a
Year 3 child will tell you a choice with one option is no choice at
all. ‘
PAFA is protesting
against these illegal tactics. Key members along with Gladstone Park include
protesting parents from high profile schools: Roke Primary in Croydon, and
Downhills in Haringey. Other schools protesting schools include Calder High in
Hebden Bridge and Thomas Gamuels in Walthamstow.
Angeline Hind of Roke Primary said: “We expect more and more parents and schools to join us as with Ofsted shifting the goalposts once again, there will soon be a torrent of schools subjected to the bullying and underhand methods we have experienced. At times it feels surreal like we are living in Communist China. Our schools are at the tip of a tidal wave to come as more and more schools are forced to convert. This is not about standards but political ideology and privatisation by stealth.”
Angeline Hind of Roke Primary said: “We expect more and more parents and schools to join us as with Ofsted shifting the goalposts once again, there will soon be a torrent of schools subjected to the bullying and underhand methods we have experienced. At times it feels surreal like we are living in Communist China. Our schools are at the tip of a tidal wave to come as more and more schools are forced to convert. This is not about standards but political ideology and privatisation by stealth.”
Notes
The test measuring
lawfulness of exercise of public law:
- Legality - Departments must act within the scope of any powers and for a proper purpose; not acting in a hasty and disproportionate fashion.
- Procedural fairness – for example giving the individual or individuals an opportunity to be heard.
- Reasonableness or rationality: including the principles of proportionality and the ‘Wednesbury principle’ (when making a reasonable and rational decision all relevant factors must be taken into account and all irrelevant factors omitted). Compatibility with the Human Rights Convention rights and EU law.
·
Parents
from Downhills School were involved in working with filmmaker Rhonda Evans in a
film about forced academies available online http://www.academiesandlies.org.uk/
These principles are all
described in the Judge Over Your Shoulder (JOYS) document issued by the
Treasury Solicitor: http://www.tsol.gov.uk/Publications/Scheme_Publications/judge.pdf)
