What does becoming an Academy actually mean?

[VelvetStrider]

There are many rumours and a lot of controversy circling DS's primary school at the moment - damning Ofsted report, possibly special measures, new head, communication issues, unresolved bullying problems, lots of changes, several governors resigning and a simmering undercurrent of uncertainty and distrust. Lots of people whispering about 'becoming an Academy' like it's a terrible thing being thrust upon us.

I'm unsure what being an Academy means, though. I know it's to do with control of funding, and sounds like it must be a pita for staff with more paperwork etc., but what does it mean, practically, for the school as a whole and the children's experience?

Can anyone share their experiences please? I've tried searching archived threads but they all seem to be at least 2 years old.

Basically they have more control over how they spend their budget. This can include staff salaries, the amount they spend on resources, etc.

If the school is failing, usually a local outstanding primary will team up and become its "mentor school" to help drive up standards.

Usually secondary school academies will have a "creative" specialism such as Arts, Science, Technology etc. but not sure if primaries will be the same.

Here is an example of an outstanding primary Academy in quite a deprived area - so you can see that they're not all failing. I can't believe the same Headteacher is still there! He was Headteacher when I was there over 20 years ago :)

www.stbedeacademy.org/

Thanks! It all sounds like a good thing to me - why are so many people against it? Is it just fear of the unknown? I would have thought any individual school is better placed to know its own needs than the local authority .

All of our local secondaries are Academies now, and it seems to have instigated much better facilities and opportunities for the pupils. I don't know if the primary Academy system is the same though.

I think there's confusion among the public as to whether Academy status shows the school is doing v well (I think this was the original view) but now it's seen as a way for a failing school to try and turn itself around (the more recent perception).

My brother's (secondary) school failed its special measures, closed down over the summer, and re-branded itself as a new school with some new staff. It raised itself from failing to Good in about 5 years. So even in a worst-case scenario, it can sometimes be a good thing :)

When schools become academies the school has greater autonomy. It wouldn't have support from the borough (unless the support is bought in)...some people think this is a good thing, others have concerns.

There is a crucial distinction between a "convertor academy" a school which opts to become an academy and a "sponsored" academy which is where a school becomes an academy but has its governance taken over by a sponsor> Arguably sponsored academies can have less autonomy than a local Authority School.