Scheme to sign up 'high calibre' governors

From the BBC: The Inspiring Governors Alliance wants to encourage more "high-calibre people" to volunteer... There are 350,000 governors in England...overseeing £46bn of school spending ...the expertise provided by governors to the school system has the value of £1bn per year."

Warren School will be forced to become an academy - Lord Nash letter.

From the Barking and Dagenham Post: 'A school in Chadwell Heath will be forced to become an academy despite the majority of parents opposing the move, the department of education announced today.' A Judicial Review is being sought BBC.

Two Devon schools chosen to be National Teaching Schools

From the Bournemouth Echo: Tregonwell Multi-Academy Trust and Twynham School have been selected to be National Teaching Schools - Teaching schools were introduced in 2001 and are all rated as ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted. They raise standards through school-to-school support.

Sir David Carter answers questions on academy finances

Sir David Carter, Chief Executive of Cabot Learning Federation and recently appointed Regional Schools Commissioner (RSC) for the South West, has answered some questions originally published  in the run up to the Education Select Committee hearing on 13 May.

Staff reshuffles at King's Lynn schools

From Lynn News: 'Craig Morrison will lead both the King’s Lynn Academy (KLA) and the King Edward VII School (KES) from the start of the new term in September, when KES will also convert to academy status.'

Fee paying school scraps free school plans over faith cap

From the Liverpool Echo: (St Mary’s College) has scrapped plans to become a free school after a clash with the Archdiocese of Liverpool... (which)refused to back its application because of the Government’s decision to impose a 50% cap on the number of pupils admitted to free schools on the basis of their faith.'

Private school turned free school admits bureaucracy increase after Ofsted downgrade

From The Journal: Former private school Grindon Hall (Sunderland)... had been rated “good with outstanding features” by the education watchdog prior to becoming a free school has now been told it “requires improvement”... Principal Chris Gray said: 'Moving from the private school world into the public sector as a free school has been a bureaucratic challenge in many ways and this is reflected in the report.'

ARK/United Learning veteran fills West London Free School gap

From Chiswick4.com:  'Toby Young, who led a group of parents in setting up the free school confirmed her role on Friday May 9, saying: "Dame Sally Coates (recently departed from ARK to United Learning) has very kindly agreed to keep on eye on the school this term and help us recruit a new head..."'

Public Accounts Committee criticises free school finances

The Public Accounts Committee published its report into the establishment of free schools saying: 'The Agency (EFA) relies on high levels of compliance by schools, yet fewer than half of free schools submitted their required financial returns for 2011-12 to the Agency on time.

Rift over alleged diversion of £400m to free schools

From the Guardian/Observer: '...Lib Dems confirmed highly damaging leaked information from a senior government source, who said that Gove had secretly taken the money from the Basic Need fund for local authorities last December, in the face of stiff opposition from the Lib Dem schools minister David Laws...According to the coalition insider, the £400m would be enough to fund 30,000 new school places...

DFE investigates two inspectorates over Trojan horse allegations

From the Sunday Times: 'The DfE is understood to be investigating the Association of Muslim Schools UK (AMS-UK) and the Bridge Schools Inspectorate (BSI) amid claims that some of their inspectors support fundamentalist Islamic beliefs...'

New head at Manchester Academy and new CEO at Landau Forte Charitable Trust

From the BBC: Andy Griffin will become principal at Manchester Academy (United Learning) in Moss Side... previously the head at Broadoak School in Partington.

Last two Regional Schools Commissioners are women

The last two of eight Regional Schools Commissioners (RSC) were announced by Schools Commissioner Frank Green at the Education Select Committee yesterday morning (via Laura McInerney) - the full list of eight is below.

Questions for the Education Select Committee on Tuesday

Here are some questions that could be put to the first panel of the Education Select Committee on Tuesday: witnesses:
Frank Green, Schools Commissioner, Department for Education
Sir David Carter, CEO of Cabot Academies
Robert Hill, Education Consultant (Author of 'The Missing Middle')

West London Free School buys £9m office block

From the Evening Standard: The paper reports the school will be too big for its Cambridge Grove site by September, that it now has three Hammersmith sites (only one of which is used for classrooms) and plans to turn its new £9 million office block into another school building.

Nuneaton Academy rated 'inadequate'

From the Coventry Telegraph: The principal of Nuneaton Academy, William Branney - in the post since January (2014) - said the 'inadequate' rating was 'not wholly unexpected'.

Berkshire primary academy becomes a national teaching school

From Get Reading: Churchend Primary Academy in Usk Road has been selected by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) to become a national teaching school.

Tauheedul MAT's proposed 'flagship' opens as independent academy

From the Lancashire Telegraph: The school proposed as the 'flagship' of the fast-growing Tauheedul academy chain (Tauheedul Free Schools Trust) has opened as an independent academy.

Ormiston interim managers at failing school made permanent

From the Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News: 'John Rigby and Tuesday Humby of Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy (OBA) were appointed as interim executive headteacher and interim deputy headteacher respectively to change the school’s fortunes following ex-headteacher Carole Owen’s retirement in January.'

SPTA academies win priority school building programme cash

From the Star: The Government is working with Askern Moss Road Infant School and Don Valley Academy and Performing Arts College as part of the Priority School Building Programme, with the sites being either rebuilt or refurbished.

Another secondary joins Kent Catholic School's Partnership

From the Canterbury Times: St Anselm’s became an academy as part of the Kent Catholic Schools’ Partnership at the start of this month.

West London Free School seeks third head in three years

From the Evening Standard: 'Sam Naismith, current head of the West London Free School in Hammersmith, is stepping down after just over a year in the post.'

£300k for a new 5-member academy teaching school alliance

From the Northern Echo: FIVE Church of England schools in the Diocese of Durham will receive £300,000 over 3 years for the new Prince Bishop Teaching School Alliance which consists of:

Academy and museum get £139k funding for partnership

From Local Berkshire: 'The Langley Academy has teamed up with the River and Rowing Museum... to set up teacher and museum champions to align museum programmes with school curriculums across the region... thanks to a £138,600 grant from Arts Council England.'

Parents question details of academy consultation process

From the Birmingham Mail: '...parents were ...concerned that the schools (Colmore Infant and Nursery School and neighbouring Colmore Junior School) had engaged a consultancy company specialising in academy conversion, leading to speculation that it was a “done deal”.'

Teachers panel questions free school bid over asbestos

From Wembley Matters: 'Brent Teachers' Panel has written to Katharine Birbalsingh... and Michael Gove... seeking information on the asbestos removal programme at Arena House...'

Oxfordshire calls for academy admissions reform

From the Guardian: 'Academies can turn pupils away even when they have surplus capacity, according to Oxfordshire county council (Conservative)... the policy potentially puts at risk the option for parents to send their children to a "good, local school" and wants such admission freedoms to be fettered.'

Sikh school given all clear over contamination fear

From the Bucks Free Press: 'THE Khalsa Academy site is safe for pupils and staff, according to the Department for Education, after concerns were published over possible ground contamination.'

Sixth form free school bid attacked by MP

From the Yorkshire Post: Angela Smith MP said proposals for the Chapeltown Academy, on a business park in Sheffield,it has 'very little transparency in the development of the venture and it is risky' - it has been given initial Government support... The school’s director of education Ali Jaffer responded...

Cidari Trust grows by one with three more lined up

From The Lancashire Telegraph: St Luke and St Philip’s Primary (Blackburn) became the second school to join the Church of England in Lancashire’s academy trust....Cidari Trust which has been operating for several months and already includes St George’s High, a secondary in Blackpool.

Council seeks new MAT to break monopoly of existing MAT

From the Oxford Mail: 'The council also wants to have a school that is not run by King Alfred’s Academy Trust in Wantage.' The paper reported that Grove Parish Council Chairman Frank Parnell had contacted three academy chains and had already spoken to Aspirations Academy Trust.

£2bn for PSBP will not go far, says architect

From BD Magazine: After the announcement by the DfE that it would put £2bn into its Priority School Building Programme (PSBP) the magazine reported Rob Howard, director of architecture and a school design specialist at Broadway Malyan saying: 'with over 10,100 primary and secondary community schools in England as of January 2013, even accounting for the improvements already made, £2 billion will not go very far.'

Academy's sixth form plans should boost local economy

From the Stoke Sentinel: 'Haywood Academy will receive around £1 million from the Department for Education to turn Burslem Town Hall into its new sixth form college... Steelite International, which sponsors the academy, and Stoke-on-Trent City Council are also supporting the £2.1 million project.

Free school bid picked two sponsor chains later forbidden from growing

From the Daventry Express: Middlemore Residents Association has admitted defeat for now in its in bid to bring a free school to the 
Daventry estate (Northamptonshire)... Initially E-ACT... was chosen (until) it was given notice to improve... the group then worked with the David Ross Education Trust (DRET) before DRET was told by the Department of Education to concentrate on existing academies rather than build new ones.

Brent free school opening delayd

From Wembley Matters:The DfE has not been able to secure a site for the school (Gateway Academy)... due to open to Year 7 pupils... will now not open in September

June elections for Head Teacher Boards - 2 RSCs yet to be appointed

In his speech at the Academies Show schools minister Lord Nash said elections to Head Teacher Boards (HTBs) that will support Regional Schools Commissioners will start in June.

Laura McInerney: Regional School Commissioners vs Directors of School Standards

Published in Matt Hood's blog: 'Today this blog compares the Labour Directors with Coalition Commissioners. Then tomorrow, we’ll reveal our own model (Published: Could the middle tier look like this?).'

David Blunkett's education review

From David Blunkett MP, also a piece in the Guardian: 'My report for the Labour party's policy review, published today, has sought to focus on a strategy for school improvement...'

Primary Academy given permission to sponsor up to two more primaries

From Bucks Free Press: 'Chepping View Primary Academy has announced it has gained the approval of the Department for Education to sponsor up to two other primary academies.'

Al-madinah update with timeline - DfE says it was 'right to intervene'

From the Derby Telegraph: THE Department for Education has said an "encouraging" report on Derby's Al-Madinah School has justified its "right to intervene"... more than half of the 140 secondary pupils have left to find new schools.'

Free school head steps down after less than a year

From the Guardian, with some more details from the Judith Kerr school's website: '...Basia Lubaczewska, head at Judith Kerr primary, a German-English bilingual school in Herne Hill, south London, stepped down last month, only six months after it opened' ... interviews for replacements are being conducted...
Interim head: Dorothy Spence
Consultant head: Maura Keady

Guardian: 9% of free schools rated inadequate

From the Guardian: 'Four free schools have been rated "inadequate" by the inspectorate, of the 41 that have had judgments published as of the end of last week. This is 9.7%. By contrast, the latest Ofsted data on all state schools shows only 3% are categorised as inadequate.'

Tauheedul's Blackburn school 'outstanding' in second year of existence

From the Lancashire Telegraph: 'Tauheedul Islam Boys (High) School (TIBHS) has achieved an outstanding Ofsted rating in just its second year in existence.'

BBC: EFA concern over family appointments and NY trip at trust

From the BBC: 'The Education Funding Agency report highlights concerns about the Education Fellowship Trust (which runs 16 schools).

TV teacher says Essex can no longer support non academy schools

Brentwood County High School -  is consulting on converting: On its website the school said: 'We are seeking to convert to be a Co-operative Academy... less than ten of Essex's seventy-five secondary schools are still under the control of the Local Authority, that the LA no longer has the capacity to support our school as it has done in the past.'

Essex secondary consider's being sponsored by its exec head's school

From the Basildon Recorder: Woodlands School, Basildon, is now considering being sponsored by Appleton School. Karen Kerridge who is executive headteacher at Woodlands is also the head at Appleton  - Appleton is a Business and Enterprise Colleges, its main sponsor is the Arcadia Group.

Haverhill Academy becomes a national teaching school

From the Haverhill Echo: 'Samuel Ward Academy has been selected by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) to become a national teaching school...'

City of Norwich School given permission to join Ormiston

From CNS: City of Norwich School has said it can convert to academy status as a sponsored academy - its sponsor would be Ormiston Academies Trust. The School said 'CNS will retain its name, brand and identity and will be an integral part of the Ormiston family of academies...Consultations can now take place with staff, parents and the local community.

Primary in status consultation in anti academy Leicester

From the Leicester Mercury: Northfield House Primary, in Leicester, (Ofsted: special measures)... A statement on the school's website said: 'The governing body of our school is proposing to convert to an academy, sponsored by Rushey Mead Educational Trust.'

Inspiration in talks with another secondary school

From the Norwich Evening News: 'Great Yarmouth High School... ( Ofsted: requires improvement)... is in negotiations to join the Inspiration Trust... sponsored by Theodore Agnew, chairman of the Department for Education’s Academies Board.