Furious headteachers and governors reject diocese’s move to propel them into church multi-academy trusts

"Consultation" response from schools says diocese's move was "dictatorial rather than nurturing".

 

A Church of England diocese’s attempt to propel non-academy schools into multi-academy trusts of its own choosing appears to have backfired, as headteachers and governing bodies stand by their decision to remain in the local authority maintained sector.

“Roadshow” meetings held before Christmas by the Church of England Diocese of Leicester saw headteachers and chairs of governors from the remaining non-academy primary schools within it informed, without having been told in advance, of the “expectation” that all would join one of four diocesan trusts.

However, legally unless a school fails an Ofsted inspection it is governing bodies, rather than dioceses, who decide on whether or not it leaves its local authority to join an academy trust. And, under the Labour government, the Department for Education no longer has a policy of encouraging schools to become academies.

A group of the Diocese of Leicester schools have since responded en masse to the subsequent “consultation” on the move, rejecting the proposal as not “best for the school or our children,” and accusing the diocese of behaving in a “dictatorial” manner.

The Diocese of Leicester would not say how many schools had signed up to join multi-academy trusts as a result of its initiative, but indicated that it would be releasing a response to schools” in the coming weeks.

As Education Uncovered has reported, a relatively high proportion of academy conversions in recent years have occurred among Church of England and Roman Catholic primaries. But instances of dioceses putting pressure on schools to convert have in some cases proven highly controversial on the ground.