Upcoming Events :
Seminar: Outsourcing and Contract Procurement
Tue 28 Feb 2012
Minerva House, 5 Montague Close, London, SE1 9BB
Gove 'encouraged' by first wave of new academies
Wed 01 Sep 2010
Education secretary Michael Gove has said the relatively low number of schools converting to academies does not mean the scheme has been a failure.
New figures revealed that just 32 schools have made the change to academy status in time for the new term, with a total of 142 institutions expected to do so this academic year.
Speaking in May, Mr Gove projected that 200 existing schools would take up the offer to become academies in 2010.
Although the actual number has fallen short of expectations, he said the government remains committed to improving education standards by giving top-performing schools more autonomy.
The 142 new academies are being established under the Academies Act, which was introduced to parliament in May and became law by the end of July.
Mr Gove told BBC News: "More than half of outstanding schools have expressed an interest.
"The numbers so far are very encouraging; there are signs of real hope for the future."
Andrea Squires, a partner at Winckworth Sherwood Solicitors, commented: "We are pleased to have advised five of these 32 schools and we continue to advise many more hoping to convert in the next few weeks.
"The process for conversion is a challenging one and requires commitment from governing bodies and schools' senior management teams. Only the most dedicated would have made September 1st and we know there are schools who would very much have liked to have been on this list.
"We expect there will be many more schools interested in this option as they see those who have gone before realise some of the benefits of conversion."
