12 September 2008
Schools Secretary Ed Balls announced a growing interest from universities in sponsoring academies, as he opened Rickstones Academy in Essex on September 10.
Balls said that more than half of England's universities were to sponsor academy schools, with a further 20 in discussions over sponsorship. He added that pupils would benefit from an injection of 'university culture'. The increased interest follows the abolition of the previous £2m sponsorship requirement.
Rickstones is one of 47 new academies starting up this month, with 180 new or refurbished schools opening in total during the school term — the highest number for 30 years.
Balls commented: 'We have already said we want to raise standards across the board. By next autumn many of these “National Challenge” schools will benefit from new buildings or being converted into academies.'
The Building Schools for the Future programme aims to have rebuilt or refurbished every secondary school in England by 2020, but the initiative has come under criticism for slow progress and poor school design.
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