Hackney teachers denounce plans to force schools to become academies

Trailblazing: Northwold became Hackney’s first primary academy last April. Photograph: Josh Loeb

Government plans to force all schools in England to become academies have been slammed as “deeply undemocratic” by the Hackney branch of the National Union of Teachers (NUT).

Chancellor George Osborne announced last week that every primary and secondary school in England would be forced to convert into an academy during the next six years, in a move that would “set schools free from local education bureaucracy”.

A spokesperson for Hackney NUT denounced the plans, saying: “We see this as the further defragmenting and privatising of the people’s public services, when parents have not even been consulted. It is deeply undemocratic.

“Why is this happening when budgets have been slashed? It’s another distraction from the severe teacher shortages and school places crisis.”

The union claims there is no evidence that academies are better than state schools. “In fact evidence speaks to the contrary as profit is put before pupils,” the spokesperson said.

“Anyone can open a school now, apart from the Local Education Authority. The already restricted curriculum, lacking in arts and depth, will no longer be national.”

The new draft legislation states that schools must be academies by 2020 or have official plans to convert into an academy by 2022.

Hackney Council has not yet decided the future of Hackney Learning Trust, its education department, which currently provides services to the borough’s existing academies as well as state schools. However, a council spokesperson said the Trust’s work was “not expected” to change.

“Hackney Learning Trust works successfully with all schools, including the borough’s academies, and that is not expected to change”, the spokesperson said.

“We will evaluate the impact on Hackney over the coming months and years, and will be working with schools to understand the implications and to ensure carefully considered plans are developed to secure the continued high standard of educational provision for pupils in Hackney.”

Academies are state-funded schools that receive their funding directly from the Department for Education, rather than from a local authority.

A headteacher or principal is responsible for the day-to-day running of the school, which is overseen by individual charitable bodies called academy trusts.

This story was updated with a comment from Hackney Council at 12:37pm on Tuesday 22 March – Ed.