16 November 2007
Schools Secretary Ed Balls has dismissed suggestions that the government is abandoning its flagship academy schools programme.
In September, Balls asked the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit, the Treasury and the Department for Children, Schools and Families to review the effectiveness of the academies.
Teaching unions welcomed the news of the review, which emerged this week. The National Union of Teachers claimed it marked a serious retreat on the policy.
NUT General Secretary Steve Sinnott said: 'Ed Balls' decision to review academies is highly significant. It means that the government is beginning to realise that academies are not fit for purpose: that of tackling the needs of socially deprived youngsters.'
A spokeswoman for the Association of Teachers and Lecturers said she hoped the review was a significant one. 'We all want the kids who are performing least to get a better chance, but we don't think academies are the right way to give them that,' she told Public Finance.
But Balls said such reviews were merely routine. 'The PMDU regularly peer reviews important aspects of government departments' work and adds value by analysing how delivery can be improved,' he said.
'Claims that we are set to abandon the programme are utter nonsense. Far from retreating on [it], I have already announced that we want to accelerate [it] so that we have more academies than previously planned and open them faster than before.'
There are plans to swell the number of academies from the 83 open now to 230 by 2010. But the government has also slightly altered its policy emphasis since Balls took on the schools brief.
Statements he made in the summer encouraged academies to work closely with neighbouring schools and allowed universities to act as academy sponsors.
PFnov2007
