Anti AcademiesAlliance“Agood

localschoolforevery

child”

Is the tide turning?THE NUMBER OF applicationsfor academy conversion fell lastyear. It is no surprise. Thebreadth and depth of theproblems associated withacademisation is astonishing.Rarely a day passes without anew scandal in academy land.

From fat cat pay to failing freeschools, the idea thatprivatisation – or what Govecalled the ‘supply siderevolution’ – would solve theproblems of education isrisible.

But in truth, it is no laughingmatter. The academiesexperiment has caused havocin many schools. That’s why the

Whatever the speculation of anearly general election beingcalled, in reality, it could be May2022 before a new governmentcan use legislation to halt thisacademy madness. In themeantime, campaigning can stopschools converting.

We have seen an increasingnumber of successful anti-academisation campaigns thisyear. But even if campaignsare ultimately lost, they helplay the basis for change in the

future. The AAA is funded to help you

campaign. Please get in touch assoon as you hear of any schoolconsidering academisation.

Anti Academies Alliancecontinues to campaign against it.This leaflet is designed to helpyou to renew or take up antiacademy campaigning.

Parents in Newhamcampaigning againstthe academisation of their school.

Picture: Jess Hurd

Repo

rt D

igita

l

With

kind permission of Chris Riddell

Twitter:@antiacademies Facebook: Anti Academies Alliance Affiliate: http://antiacademies.org.uk/affiliate Email:office@antiacademies.org.uk Website: www.antiacademies.org.uk

lAcademisation doesnot improve schools –LAs have a better recordin school improvement.lAcademisation ispolitically sensitive – anew government maychange the rules/systemso conversion isinherently risky.lAcademisation is‘forever’ – there is noway back to localdemocratic controllAcademisation is seenby business as anopportunity for

investment – somechains use service levelagreements to profitfrom their schools.lAcademisation leadsto a loss of democracy –with no real consultationor the requirement forbinding staff andparental ballots,governors can (and do)ignore the wishes of staffand parents.lAcademisation hasresulted in many multiacademy trusts (MATs)having boards of trusteesthat are unconnected tolocal schools and have noelected staff or parentrepresentatives.lAcademisation leadsto schools beingvulnerable to ‘takeovers’with no say for parentsand staff.lAcademisation

How many anti-academies campaignshas your associationbeen involved in duringthe last 12 months? Five.How many did you win?Four. They were all primaryschools. The fifth was asecondary school which welost. Ealing Local Authoritybacked the head teacher asthey wanted to ensure afailed primary next door didnot fall into the hands of achain like ARK or Harris.

Whilst we lost, it was veryclose. There were one or twomoments that might haveswung it in our favour. Easyto say now in hindsight, butwe could have avoided a fewmistakes. It went to six daysof strike action, but keyunion members left in the

summer and weunderestimated the impactthis would have in theautumn term.

In contrast, in the fourprimaries that we won, theLocal Authority supportedus by supplying MPs andCouncillors for publicmeetings aimed at parents.So what made thedifference betweenwinning and losing?Two things: strike action andparental support. In the onewe lost, we weren’t successfulin winning over sufficientparents. As I have alreadysaid, the support of the LAwas also important too.Why was parentalinvolvement soimportant?To give you an example. In one school we couldn’t

persuade members to strikebut the parents were wellorganised. They organisedpetitions, a big lobby ofgovernors, debatesstreamed via Facebook andother social media. Thishelped lift the confidence ofour members to considerstrike action.

But to be honest, strikeaction was the foundation ofmost campaigns. It was thestrikes that helped provide afocus for parents to rallyround and support.

We found it was best to doa public meeting in the runup to the strike; take strikeaction with parents onpicket lines, and then use allof this for a bigger publicmeeting or lobby ofgovernors. In primaryschools, it is much easier to

reach parents and forparents to meet each otherand do stunts whendropping off their children.In one school parents did a10-minute chant outside theHT office with a ministudent and parent strikewith the press invited.

Calling for many days ofstrike action is alsoimportant as it keeps thepressure up and builds theparent campaign. Membersfeel more emboldened whenthey see parental support. What do you think aremost important firstthings to do to get acampaign up andrunning?As soon as you hear that aschool is consideringconversion it means theyhave probably been actively

planning this for six monthsor more. Remember, assoon as schools requestinformation from the DfEabout conversion, the DfEconsider it a done deal!

So move quickly; don’twait and assume the worst.Our first argument was thatonly the threat of strikeaction would stopacademisation. We got helpand advice from the AAA.We got reps from othersschools that hadsuccessfully opposedacademisation to speak atunion meetings. Weleafletted parents at theschool gates and put advertsin local newspapers andsocial media adverts forpublic meetings that wewere organising. We tried toidentify a core of parents

who would run with thecampaign. What impact has antiacademies campaigninghad on yourassociation?100% positive, even if wehad lost. In the past, anti-academies campaigns havealways helped build a newlayer of reps and activists inthe association. Win or lose,these campaigns get peopleinvolved and new activistsemerge. Obviously successcreates confidence, not justin the schools affected butright across the association.It makes the union morerelevant and increasesattendance at meetings. We have also made lots ofparental contacts which weare now utilising for thecampaign over funding.

“Strike action was the foundation. It was this that helpedprovide a focus for parents to rally round and support.”

STEFAN SIMMSis the Divisional Secretary ofEaling Teachers Association in West London.The AAA spoke to Stefan about the successfulcampaigning against academisation that ETAhas been involved in over the last year.

Stefan Simms: “Members feel more emboldened when they see parental support.”

Pictures: Jess Hurd R

epor

t Dig

ital

doesn’t stop budget cuts– in fact, moreacademies are runningup ‘overspends’ thanlocal authority schools. lAcademisation isopposed by all theteacher trade unionsand where changes inpay and conditions havebeen imposed therehave been strikes andprotests.lAcademisation meanschildren are more likely

to be ‘taught’ byunqualified staff.lAcademisation ismore about playingpolitics with educationthan improving ourschools – billions hasbeen spent onconverting schools –this money has gone tolegal advisors andconsultants rather thanchildren. It has beendone because somepoliticians claim that

and CEOs of MATs. OneCEO earns more than£500 000, but there aremany earning morethan £175,000 (theaverage head teacherpay in a secondaryschool is £80,000 to£120,000).lAcademisation hasseen an increase inexclusion rates andworse provision forSEND pupils.lAll the evidencesuggests that good

schools are dependenton good staff deliveringgood teaching andlearning with goodleadership focused onsupporting them –MATs are corporatebodies with leadershipsthat are often remotefrom supportingteaching and learning.They are too busyexpanding the ‘business’to focus on what reallymatters in theclassroom.

the creating a ‘freemarket of competingschools’ is a better wayto provide education. Allthe evidence fromeducation systemsaround the worldsuggests collaboration ismore effective.lAcademisation hasseen the emergence ofgreater inequality ineducation. Oneparticular concern hasbeen the growth of ‘fatcat’ salaries for heads

Newham, amongst others,has shown that resistanceto academisation has notgone away! Parents, unions,campaigners andcouncillors have united todefend their schools.

What’s wrong with academisationand why we must put an end to it

Academisationcan be fought!

‘Academies havefewer freedomsthan maintainedschools’The rapid conversion ofstate schools to academiessince 2010 has resulted inthe majority of suchschools having lessfreedom than before,according to ProfessorAnne West of LSE, and DrDavid Wolfe QC at Matrix.Academies, the SchoolSystem in England and aVision for the Futurehighlights the lack oftransparency in the wayacademies are run.

In contrast tomaintained schools, wheredecisions are taken bygovernors appointedthrough an open process,academies are run by‘trustees’, whose opaqueappointments are notsubject to openness ruleswhich apply across otherareas of public life.

Download the reporthere: www.lse.ac.uk/social-policy/Assets/Documents/PDF/Research-reports/Academies-Vision-Report.pdf

Jeremy supports actionagainst academisation“I send my solidarity to you today on theNewham schools strike againstacademisation of Keir Hardie, Avenueand Cumberland schools. Our schoolsshould be accountable to parents, staffand the whole community – and withLabour’s National Education Service, theywill be. Well done to parents, staff andtheir union taking a stand today for ourchildren. They must be listened to.” n JEREMY CORBYN, 22nd February Pi

cture: Geoff Dexter

NationalEducationService together

# inclusive

#democratic

#comprehensive# funded

#progressive

Let’sbuild a

Earlier this year, NewZealand’s Education Ministerannounced the end of‘charter schools’ (NZ’sequivalent of our academies),marking the conclusion of aninitiative dubbed a ‘failed,expensive experiment’ byeducation unions.The minister was clear that

these schools, introduced in 2011by a conservative coalition, weredriven by ‘ideology rather thanevidence’ and that ‘theGovernment’s strong view is thatthere is no place for them in theNew Zealand system.’Charter schools had been

criticised by a wide range ofeducational authorities, teacher

organisations, the public andpolitical parties.The announcement was

welcomed by the New ZealandEducational Institute and thePost Primary Teachers’Association after mountingresistance to the whole idea of

private publicly fundededucation.The NZEI National Secretary

was clear, ‘Public schools canand do reflect the diversity intheir communities and areresponsive and accountable tothem. Many public schools are

using the creativity of the NewZealand Curriculum far betterthan any charters. We don’tneed charter schools forinnovation.’The PPTA President

welcomed the decision toremove these schools as a ‘greatday for public schools and theircommunities – PPTA membershave been consistent and unitedagainst the corporate attack onour education system, ensuringthat charters remained acontentious and divisive issueand never gained widespreadacceptance.’New Zealand has done it, so

must we. Let’s build a NationalEducation Service together. For more info see: workingtowardsnes.com

New Zealand has done it, so should we

Anti AcademiesAlliance “Agood localschool

foreverychild”

What do we want for our schools?Resistance to academisationnever went away and afterwhat has happened atCarillion and the WakefieldCity Academies Trust (WCAT),it is clear that something hasto change.

Recent months have seencampaigns againstacademisation in London,Norwich, Birmingham,Cambridge, Warwickshire,Barnsley, Sussex, Bristol,Waltham Abbey, Sheffield,Wakefield, Kent, Greenwich,Lancashire… the list goes on.

In Newham, the councilitself recently passed amotion calling on a halt toacademisation, for schools toremain with the localauthority and for nationalterms and conditions for all

staff in academies until suchtime that a government‘abolishes the academysystem’.

Given this new situation,the AAA is renewing itsefforts to stop academyconversions. A fracturededucational landscapeconfronts us, but every schoolsaved now from

Please contact me so I/we can help the campaign We want to affiliate to the Anti Academies Alliance

Name/Organisation..........................................................................................................................

Please fill in andhand in to the AAA stall or postto: AAA, 7LowerCape, Warwick CV34 5DP

Postal address................................................................................................................................

............................................................................................................................................................................

.............................................................................. Post code............................................................

Email..........................................................................................................................................................................Phone number............................................................................................................................................

academisation will make thetask of sorting this mess outeasier. We urge anyone tocontact us if any school plansa conversion.

But it does not stop there.Hopefully a Corbyn-ledLabour government will seetackling this as a priority forthe new National EducationService.

The question of the‘middle tier’must becentral to any discussionsabout an NES, not onlybecause the chaos causedby deregulation needsfixing but also because anyhope of delivering realchange and real socialjustice will require either areturn to Local Authoritiesor some sort of elected andaccountable local educationauthority.

We face an entrenched‘education ruling class’who have power andcontrol over vast swathesof the education system. Itwill take a huge socialmovement of staff,parents and students toshift them.

exam factoriesunderfundingprivatisation testing corruptionfragmentation free schoolsselection nepotism demoralisation