Thurrock head on academy freedom: new employer focus

From the Thurrock Gazette: http://www.thurrockgazette.co.uk/news/10955989.Hathaway_Academy_taking_steps_in_the_right_direction/

'(James) Howarth (head of Hathaway Academy, Grays) said that becoming an academy has given him the autonomy to make changes to the curriculum and manage the budget to suit the needs of the school, rather than the local authority saying how the money should be spent.



He said: “For me, the key thing about being an academy is the autonomy to spend my budget in an appropriate way to support teaching, progress, attainment and learning.

“I can set a curriculum that suits the need of our community.

“Take the High House Production Park for instance – I can set a curriculum that will maximise the opportunity for employment there or at the new port.

“Then there’s the right that being an academy gives me and the school to have a vision and a purpose.”

Hathaway Academy, part of the The Academy Transformation Trust, - 2007: inadequate 2009: satisfactory 2013: academy status