LGA RESPONDS TO SUTTON TRUST RESEARCH ON ACADEMY CHAINS

Responding to research by the Sutton Trust which reveals two-thirds of academy chains perform below average for disadvantaged pupils, Cllr Anntoinette Bramble, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Children and Young People Board, said:

“This research reinforces the compelling need for the Government to give councils the powers to improve struggling schools.

“Councils have a strong track record in school improvement, with 91 per cent of council-maintained schools now good or outstanding while evidence shows councils are better at turning around failing schools than those converted to a sponsor-led academy.

“Across the country, hundreds of schools, often in disadvantaged areas, are already being turned around thanks to the intervention of councils to deliver and maintain strong leadership, outstanding classroom teaching and appoint effective support staff and governors.

“It is only by working with councils and giving them the necessary powers, rather than shutting them out, that we can meet the challenges currently facing the education system. If that means councils setting up their own multi-academy trusts (MATs) then they should be able to do so.”