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Original poster

Free schools - who's running the charities that are running the schools

27 replies

BeingAMumIsFun · 05/09/2011 13:06

ARK - Tory Peer Lord Fisk (who sits it the house of Lords) - along with investment bankers. The ARK charity hold most of its money in a fund in the Caymen islands and there about 6-8 charities involved - of course Lord Fisk is on the boards of all of them - we should ask him if he's on the board of the Cayman Island company too.

ARK already run 8 academies and guess what - they spent 7.5% less than they were given to run the schools last year - leaving them a nice surplus of over £3 million pounds - wonder if that's in the Caymen islands too?

ARK - spend £285,000 (of the academies funds) on "education consultants" and £0.00 on staff development in the schools - taken from their accounts for 2010!

CfBT - setting up free schools and already controlling academies - they spent 30% on consultancy fees than they did on teaching

And the people on the boards of the charities above - well they are putting themselves on the boards of the schools as well

So are free schools about parents or free schools about investment bankers and tory peers and consultants making lots of money - every penny they take is a penny less being spent on our kids

I don't think I like these changes any more - especially as none of these people are accountable to us - the mums!

OP posts:
CogitoErgoSometimes · 05/09/2011 14:12

I think that this is an interesting development and that it doesn't pay to be instantly alarmist just because 'businessmen' are involved.

The crunch test is that the outcomes for the children that go to those schools are the best they can possibly be. Free schools will not succeed if they do not offer a better option than the schools already in existence and if parents don't want to send their children there. If the boards of the free schools cream off profits at the expense of providing an excellent standard of education or keeping buildings in good shape then we'll have every right to get angry and they will fail. But if they can invest in teaching, equipment, consultants, buildings etc and still outperform other schools at the same time... maybe the rest of the education system will benefit from that experience?

aliceliddell · 05/09/2011 13:35

Accountable? Are you mad? They're accountable to the shareholders, like the NHS privateers will be. These idiots are selling the country from under our feet.

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