Proposals for a new Secondary Free School at Wye near Ashford are surfacing, following a public consultation Meeting earlier this week. The proposal is to use the historic buildings of Wye College, the previous agricultural college. The Proposers' website states "We are a group of local parents who believe there is a need for a new secondary school in Wye. As Ashford town centre continues to grow and more primary schools open, secondary school places in the area are in increasing demand". There is further information and opportunity to comment here. This is a far more radical proposal than the Kings Hill one, see below, as it would affect the pattern of admissions across the Ashford area. The proposal is still in its earliest stages with one comment, in my view naively' observing that: "To suggest that that the proposed free school will be not raise standards, widen choice and lead to inequality is misguided. Foremost the rules on admissions state that Free Schools must give first priority to children in care and those with special needs. Additionally Wye and the surrounding villages have a diverse demographic with people from all backgrounds". Priority is NOT given to all children with Special Needs - only those with statements where the school agrees to their admission. Indeed I believe that the admissions policy set by the school will be the major influence on its philosophy. Already it is apparent that some proposers of Free Schools are shaping admissions policies to ensure they admit primarily 'nice' children, and indeed for schools run by parents this may be a major drive in their commitment. Ashford currently has two popular selective schools and three non selective schools with variable reputations. The previous failing Ashford Christ Church School has been reinvented as the John Wallis Church of England Academy but lost out on the last phase of rebuilding. The Academy website gives no clue that any fresh building proposal is in sight. In the meantime, it continues to be unpopular with prospective parents and is likely to begin next September with over 60 empty spaces in Year 7. The Towers School, also shortly to become an Academy in Federation with Highworth Grammar School, and probably the local school to Wye also has vacancies so any new school could have serious effects on its future prospects. The full statement on the website reads: "We are a group of local parents who believe there is a need for a new secondary school in Wye. As Ashford town centre continues to grow and more primary schools open, secondary school places in the area are in increasing demand. We are currently in the process of assessing the feasibility of  establishing a relatively small secondary ‘Free School’ (approximately 400 to 600 pupils) for children aged 11 to 18 within the site of the former Wye College. We are also considering the possibility of using the school as a vocational language centre for overseas pupils during the summer months. It is our intention that 'Wye College School' becomes an educational centre of excellence. We do not believe that academic achievement is the only goal to aspire to and the focus of the school would be to guide pupils to high achievement levels in whatever path they have chosen and to ultimately prepare them for their future careers. As residents of Wye we are very aware of the potential impact such a school could have on the village. We are carefully considering all the potential consequences, and how to ensure the school would have a positive benefit for the local community. Please see the 'more information' section about upcoming events we have arranged to inform and discuss the proposals with the local community. As part of the application to the government we need to establish whether such a school would attract sufficient demand from local parents. We would therefore be grateful if you could take a few minutes to complete this questionnaire, included on this web site, to give us your views on our proposal and an indication as to whether you would consider our school as an option for your child".