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New: government confirms it is ploughing on with academy conversions, despite coronavirus: https://www.educationuncovered.co.uk/news/146286/government-confirms-it-is-ploughing-on-with-academy-conversions-despite-coronavirus.thtml
The situation seems to be that DfE is continuing with all aspects of academisation process within its direct control. The only exception to the system operating as normal is that Ofsted inspections,which kick-start forced academisation,have of course been put on hold. By Ofsted…
…This in itself is potentially feeding extra bias into system, as schools which had failed Ofsteds pre-Covid, but feel they have progressed since, now seemingly have no option of getting a return visit. This is live issue in a current case – Ormskirk School...
That case, staggeringly, saw Ofsted decide to visit and fail this LA school three weeks into the tenure of a new headteacher…progress was reported, but it was "fragile," strangely enough, and the school was duly failed and lined up for permanent structural change via a takeover.
I digress. DfE says academisation decisions are being taken by it on a “case-by-case” basis. But the reality seems to be that even contentious ones are going ahead, as they would have done pre-Covid.
On March 30th DfE told parent that “our efforts are focussed primarily on supporting the education sector on [Covid-19] and no academy orders will be issued at this time”. They are now, though, including re his school. I asked DfE when the policy had been re-started. No answer.
In a Q and A on this in DfE advice to schools, DfE talks about not pausing academisation where there were “more benefits than downsides”, “such as certainty and clarity to all school staff about their employment status”. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures/guidance-for-schools-about-temporarily-closing What...
...What self-serving rot: have been many cases where staff v opposed to academisation. Somehow I don’t think the promise of academising quickly, “for clarity”, would be popular, in such scenarios. Eg https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/jan/24/its-a-dictatorship-angry-parents-fight-back-against-school-takeovers
As I wrote last week, it is depressing that this agenda-promotion continues at such a time of crisis, and with the basic logistics of education policymaking obviously in such dire need of improvement, on seemingly every front.
