Opposition puts academy in doubt

Ministers want to open hundreds of academies by 2010

Controversial plans to turn a Derby school into a city academy may not go ahead due to opposition to the scheme.

Other plans are being considered after a review into the transformation of Sinfin Community School showed almost 90% of people opposed the idea.

One option being looked at by the council would involve turning the Derby school in a foundation school.

Under the proposal, Sinfin school would work alongside a higher-performing school in order to improve results.

Change needed

The city cabinet will look at the results of a consultation with more than 900 residents at a meeting on 13 January.

A council statement said academic results at the Derby school had improved recently.

"This is unlikely to be sustained without significant additional support and change.

"Indeed, no change is not an option."

Councillor Les Allen said: "The National Challenge (foundation school option) was introduced in June 2008 and now provide a possible alternative option that was not available previously."

Opposition

Members of the NASUWT teachers' union had opposed the move to turn the Sinfin school into an academy.

NASUWT spokesman Chris Keates said: "We are delighted by the decision to move away from academy status.

"We were opposed to the proposal because we believe that state schools should be in the ownership of the community and should not be handed over to be owned, governed and managed by external organisations."

The union is against academies, known as "independent state schools", which often have private sponsors and set their own pay and conditions for staff.

Ministers plan to have hundreds of academies open or in the pipeline by 2010, seeing them as a key way of improving schools.