More on academies

Academies are publicly funded, non-selective secondary schools. They have the freedom to implement innovative approaches to management, governance, teaching and curriculum. They are established in disadvantaged areas - either as new schools or to replace poorly performing schools - and play an important role in breaking the link between poor social circumstance and underachievement.

There are currently about 200 academies in England.

Academies are sometimes called 'independent' schools, as they do not depend on local authority funding and are not subject to the local authority's control. However, as they receive their funding from the DCSF (see overview), they are state schools (not independent of stage funding) and have limited freedom to choose which students they teach.

New academies are bound by the National Curriculum programmes of study in English, maths, science and ICT; for other subjects they need to ensure that their curriculum is broad and balanced, with a particular emphasis on one or more specialisms, which could include: science; arts, business and enterprise; computing, engineering; maths and computing; modern foreign languages; performing arts; sports; and technology. They are required to carry out Key Stage assessments and offer qualifications within the national framework.

 

Funding

  • Academies are established by sponsors from the business, faith and voluntary sectors who contribute up to £2 million towards the capital costs of the new building.
  • The remaining capital costs and recurrent funding are paid by the DCSF.
  • Academies rely on the partnerships between sponsors, parents and other educational institutions to deliver excellent education.

 

Academies are working

  • Fifth Annual Pricewaterhouse Coopers Report1:
    • In general, standards are rising at a faster rate than the national average and against comparison schools.
    • High levels of satisfaction were reported from parents, students and teaching staff.
  • GCSE results2:
    • The 36 academies that have been open long enough to have results in both 2007 and 2008 have seen an increase of 11.5 percentage points in students gaining five or more A*-C grades at GCSE and equivalent (up to 55.2%). This is more than twice the increase seen nationally.
  • National Audit Office report (2007)2:
    • GCSE performance in academies has improved compared with predecessor schools.
    • GCSE performance is improving faster in academies than in other types of school, including those in similar circumstances.
    • Taking account of both students' personal circumstances and their prior attainment, academies' GCSE performance is substantially better, on average, than other schools.

 

Ofsted inspections

To date, 29 academies have had full Ofsted inspections. In their most recent Section 5 inspections:

  • One academy (Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham Academy) was graded Outstanding in every single respect.
  • Twenty-one percent were graded Outstanding in terms of overall effectiveness.
  • Ten percent were graded Oustanding in teaching and learning.
  • Twenty percent were graded Outstanding in leadership and management.
  • Thirty-one percent were graded Good regarding overall effectiveness.
  • Forty-eight percent were graded Good in teaching and learning.
  • Thirty-one percent were graded Good in terms of leadership and management.

Admissions

Academies are three times oversubscribed.

 

Find out more

 

1Academies Evaluation: Fifth Annual Report, Pricewaterhouse Coopers (2008)

2DCSF, 2009

FURTHER INFO