Academies ‘failing to support weaker schools’

There is “overwhelming” evidence that converter academies are not pulling their weight and helping weaker schools, according to a new report by the Commons education select committee.

It also calls for Ofsted to be allowed to inspect academy chains to ensure standards are maintained.

The report says there is “no doubt” academy chains – a group of academy schools working together, often under one trust – will play an increasingly important part in school improvement, but suggests the Government needs to look again at how they are monitored.

Academies are autonomous state schools, not under local council control, with more freedom over areas such as the curriculum. There are currently 3,444 academies open in England.

The Government has allowed existing state schools to convert to academy status.

In a 2010 White Paper, the Government said it expected schools rated outstanding or good with outstanding features that decide to convert to support at least one weaker school in return for being given the status. But there are signs that this is not happening, the committee’s report found.

“During this inquiry, we received overwhelming evidence that converter academies are not living up to this expectation and pulling their weight when it comes to supporting other schools,” it said. “One submission suggested that many only ‘paid lip service to this requirement’ and another argued that converter academies are ‘working in isolation’.”

The report says the Department for Education (DfE) told the committee that findings from an early sample of converter academies suggested that they were involved with other schools. When pressed, the committee was told that this survey consisted of asking 21 converters what they were doing to support other schools.

The DfE “implicitly acknowledged this monitoring was not adequate” in its written evidence to the committee, the report said, and that it was putting in place measures to monitor academies’ support for other schools.

“It is essential that converter academies properly fulfil their obligations to support other schools,” the report concluded.

“This is particularly important if progress is to be made in closing the gap between the performance of pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds and the rest of the school population.”

It calls for the Government to ensure that “outstanding converter academies are able to support other schools in the ways they think will bring about the best results”.