(updated 5 May 2012)
As Kent diversifies into an increasingly splintered education provision, there are now five main types of Academy in Kent and Medway, and many variants as different groups of schools form Federations and chains (in both cases often where a school recognised as strong by OFSTED takes over to a greater or lesser extent, one or more schools that are perceived as weaker).
Academies are independent of KCC in most respects although they obey the same Admissions Code. They own their premises and set their own terms and conditions for teachers (Heads of old style academies generally attract considerably higher salaries than for other schools). For group three, below, this will allow highly successful schools to lure teachers away from other schools whose needs are greater.
First up were the luxury model “old style” academies. These have either been completely rebuilt or had plans approved to secure a rebuild on a very generous budget of the order of £30 million each. These are:
Bishop of Rochester Academy, Chatham; Brompton Academy, Gillingham; Cornwallis Academy, Maidstone; Folkestone Academy (incorporating Folkestone Primary Academy); Isle of Sheppey Academy; Leigh Academy, Dartford; Longfield Academy, Dartford; Marlowe Academy, Ramsgate; Marsh Academy, Romney Marsh; New Line Learning Academy, Maidstone; Strood Academy; Skinners Kent Academy, Tunbridge Wells; and Spires Academy, Canterbury.
Secondly, what promise to be the lean “old style” academies, whose rebuilds are subject to the economies of Spending Reviews. The original concept for both these types of academy was that they were failing their children or were sited in socially deprived areas, and most fit part of that concept.These are:Dover Christ Church Academy; St Augustine Academy, Maidstone; The Duke of York's Royal Military School, Dover (fully boarding, previously Independent, with a tradition of admitting children of military families - has vacancies and is all ability if you want something unusual in the state sector); The John Wallis C of E Academy Ashford; The Knole Academy, Sevenoaks and Wilmington Enterprise College, Dartford.
To these can be added the new Orchards Academy in Swanley.
Then there are the “Gove” academies, a very different animal although subject to the same regulations. They are able to raise funds for capital development in competition with other schools under two categories: where numbers of children are expanding in the area; and where the school buildings are identified as in need of improvement. In neither case is it yet clear how these funds are to be awarded or whether academies will attract priority for their bids.As distinct from the first two groups, the third set are judged “outstanding” by OFSTED, having been offered a generous financial package to convert (although there is no evidence that they need such funds!). From October 2011 onwards any primary or secondary school with a "good OFSTED" could apply to become a fourth style model academy, Special Schools are also now allowed to apply. Other schools need to form a Federation or chain with a more successful school under OFSTED criteria.
Finally, Government is aranging for Academy Groups to take over low performing primary schools. The first tranche in Kent being: Treetops Academy (previously Bell Wood Community Primary School); Oaks Academy (previously Oak Trees Community School) , and St James the Great Academy (previously St James the Great Primary Community and Nursery School) all in Maidstone and sponsored by Academies Enterprise Trust; and York Road Junior Academy (previously York Road Junior School and Language Unit) sponsored by the Leigh Academies Trust. There is an analysis of the work of two of the largest groups of Academies here. There is an inevitable conflcit between the new MAidstone academeis and the new Tiger Free School, discussed here.
Other new Kent conversions in April are: The Norton Knatchbull School in Ashford, Hampton Primary School in Herne Bay, Luddenham School (primary) in Faversham, and Pluckley CofE Primary School; with two in Medway, Greenacre School in Chatham, the full list of new style is as follows:
The Abbey School, Faversham; Barton Court Grammar School, Canterbury; Bennett Memorial Diocesan School, Tunbridge Wells; Borden Grammar School, the Federation of Canterbury High School and Canterbury Primary School; Castle Community College, Deal; Dane Court Grammar School, Broadstairs (in Federation with King Ethelbert's School, Westgate); Dartford Grammar School; Chatham House Grammar School, Ramsgate (in Federation with Clarendon House Grammar School); Cranbrook School; Folkestone School for Girls; Fulston Manor School, Sittingbourne; Gravesend Grammar School; Hartsdown Technology College, Margate; The Hayesbrook School, Tonbridge; Herne Bay High School; Highworth Grammar School, Ashford (with the Towers School, Kennington & Brockhill Park Performing Arts College, Hythe in a chain); Highsted Grammar School, Sittingbourne; Hillview School, Tonbridge; Mascalls School, Paddock Wood; The Maplesden Noakes School, Maidstone; Mayfield Grammar School (previously Gravesend Grammar School for Girls); The Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford; Oakwood Park Grammar School, Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Faversham; Sandwich Technology School (in a chain with Homewood School and Sixth Form Centre, Tenterden); Saint George's Church of England School, Gravesend; Sir Roger Manwood's School Sandwich; Sittingbourne Academy (previously Sittingbourne Academy (previously Sittingbourne Community College), in Federation with Westlands School); Swanley Technology College (now the Orchards Academy as part of the Kemnal Manor School Federation based in Bexley); Tonbridge Grammar School; Valley Park School, Maidstone (in Federation with Invicta Grammar School; Weald of Kent Grammar School, Tonbridge; Westlands School, Sittingbourne (in Federation with Regis Manor Community Primary School and Woodlands Primary School); Wilmington Grammar School for Girls (in a chain with Wilmington Grammar School for Boys).
Primary: Amherst Primary in Sevenoaks; Chiddingstone Primary School; Graveney Primary School (Faversham); Hampton Primary School, Herne Bay; Horizon Primary School (Swanley, supported by the Kemnal Trust, Bromley); Joydens Wood Infant School and Joydens Wood Junior School in a chain with Wilmington Primary School; Luddenham School, Faversham; Lynsted and Norton Primary School (in federation with Selling Church of England Primary School and Milstead and Frinstead Church of England Primary School); Meopham Community Academy (previously Meopham Primary School); Oaks Academy (previously Oak Trees Community School) - Maidstone, sponsored by Academies Enterprise Trust; Pluckley Church of England Primary School (part of the Kemnal Academies Trust); St James the Great Academy (previously St James the Great Primary Community and Nursery School) - Maidstone, sponsored by Academies Enterprise Trust; St John's CofE Primary School, Maidstone; St Stephen's Junior School, Canterbury; Sheldwich Primary School. Treetops Academy (previously Bell Wood Community Primary School) - Maidstone, sponsored by Academies Enterprise Trust;York Road Junior Academy (previously York Road Junior School and Language Unit) - sponsored by the Leigh Academy Group. Also Milestone Special School, New Ash Green (in Federation with the Leigh Academy Group).
In Medway, Chatham Grammar School for Boys; Fort Pitt Grammar School; Greenacre School; Rainham Academy (part of the Kemnal Trust - previously Rainham School for Girls); Rainham Mark Grammar School; The Rochester Grammar School; Sir Joseph Williamson's Mathematical School (in Federation with Hundred of Hoo School as part of the Williamson trust); Walderslade Girls School; and Cliffe Woods Primary School and High Halstow Primary School, both on the Hoo Peninsula.
Other schools with applications in progress are: Dover Federation of the Arts, comprising Shattterlocks Infant School, Barton Junior School, Whitecliffs Primary College of the Arts and Astor College for the Arts; Holmesdale Technology College, Snodland (in Federation with The Malling School); Meopham School; The North School, Ashford; Maidstone; Wrotham School; Borough Green Primary School; Garlinge Primary School and Nursery, Margate; Grove Park Community Primary School in Sittingbourne; Kingsdown and Ringwould CofE Primary School; Lady Boswell's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Sevenoaks; Minterne Community Primary School (Sittingbourne); Riverhead Infants School; Salmestone Primary School, Margate (in a chain with Garlinge Primary School and Hartsdown Technology College); Smarden Primary School; Wentworth Primary School, Dartford; West Malling Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School and Language Unit; Sturry CofE Primary School. In Medway - Chatham Grammar School for Girls; Woodlands Primary School in Gillingham: The Thomas Aveling School in Rochester; All Faiths' Children's Community Primary School, Strood; Chattenden Primary School.
There is just one applications for May: Hartley Primary School (part fo the Leigh Academy Trust)
This makes a total of 65 Kent secondary schools out of 101 in progress or already having converted, and 14 in Medway out of 17, together with 37 Kent Primary Schools (several of which are now part of all through Academies) and one Kent Special School, and five primary schools in Medway.
Kent County Council now appears to be moving back from its policy of encouraging all secondary schools to go down this route, as the financial incentives start to shrink and in particular, there is concern that a change of government could see academy grammar schools come under threat. Primary schools have far less infrastructure to support independence and so there are concerns here, although 6standalone primaries are going through the process.
For me, the major concerns are the two tier financial structure being created and a lack of accountability. The threat to a failing school was that it would be closed and turned into an academy. What happens to a failing academy (they do exist and numbers will inevitably increase)? Against this, there is no doubt that academies are raising the status of schools, and some are notable successes. It is no coincidence that the most oversubscribed school in Kent and most successful on a number of counts is an academy which is now spreading its wings and oversees the working of two others that have seen greatly improved exam results this year. - It is the Leigh Academy in Dartford.
You will find a Paper discussed by KCC in July 2010, that outlined the then situation here.
The Paper asserts "Our detailed analysis explains that the Government appears intent on repeating one of the worst aspects of the previous Grant Maintained system and that academies will, at least initially, receive significant top up funding beyond the funding received by LA maintained schools, contrary to their publicly stated principles for academy funding that academies should receive broadly comparable funding to schools that choose to remain LA maintained".
The paper also warns that the Government funding mechanism for the new academies means that it can vary the preferential funding at will, from as early as October. In a time of financial stringency, this is a big risk for schools to take on. An unsupported Primary school such as Chiddingstone will need considerable business expertise to work through the complications of management (This last sentence was written in 2010 when Chiddingstone was the first primary school to apply to become an academy - but only converted in December 2011!).
The decision to become an academy rests with School Governing Bodies, and parents and other outside bodies have no formal right of consultation.
The concern over lack of accountability sees parents unhappy with provision finding it very difficult or impossible to get satisfaction, for the local authority does not have responsibility for the internal running of Academies, and Department of Education processes can often appear impenetrable. The Local Government Ombudsman has no role in complaints about academies or appeals for admission or permanent exclusion, as they do not come under the aegis of local authorities. The correct route is via the DofE. You will find the procedure here. As yet I have limited experience of these - although its growing and has been positive in outcome.