11 Plus Exams Forum

My DS in year 8 at WGSB revealed that Martin Post had yesterday told the boys that WGSB was turning into an academy. It was presented largely as an opportunity to get 10% more funding than currently. Not sure how definite it all is at this stage....

hmm, and did he mention having to link to a "less highly attaining school" and having to send teachers there to help out every day?

I understood that under the new government the academies did not have to link to other schools now, hence the opportunity being more attractive than it was before.

The Department's How to become an academy describes the new process:

You will also discuss your in-principle agreement to support another school to help raise standards.

In fact this is a new requirement for conversion of outstanding schools (though they may already have had similar obligations as High Performing Specialist Schools). Under the previous government, academy status was largely used for fresh start schools, who were rarely in a position to assist others.

Daogroupie wrote:hmm, and did he mention having to link to a "less highly attaining school" and having to send teachers there to help out every day?

QE has already forseen such an eventuality by linking itself with a small special needs school, Northgate I think, sometime ago. I suspect that this was done in order to avoid being asked to link with Ravenscroft nearby in Totteridge that would have been a major commitment in terms of time, whereas the other school already has specialised staff.

watford87 wrote:My DS in year 8 at WGSB revealed that Martin Post had yesterday told the boys that WGSB was turning into an academy. It was presented largely as an opportunity to get 10% more funding than currently. Not sure how definite it all is at this stage....

The Girls' school too, apparently:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/10413492.stm

If you look on the non-outstanding schools applying for academy status you will see that the remaining SW herts consortium schools have all also registered for academy status:

Bushey Meads
Parmiters
Queens'
Ricksmansworth
St Clement Danes

Alison

Thanks for the useful link - very informative
Just had a read of the list of schools, by borough, and can't believe my child's current school has applied to be an Academy and they haven't even mentioned a word to the parents!!!

Also, very shocked to see SCD have applied.

In my neck of the woods, "Academies" appear to have a social stigma as "failing" schools, yet my child's current and future schools are FAR from failing schools.