Nikki out, Justine in

[bojorojo]

Will the new Government be more supportive of new grammar schools and change the law to allow new stand-alone ones? Theresa May wants one in her constituency and all the anti grammar school brigade have gone: Gove, Morgan, Cameron and Osborne. The BBC is reporting this could be on the agenda.

[Peregrina]

And again, more grammar schools does not address the real problem of this country which is poor vocational education, with low status.

[Peregrina]

But nice for those middle class parents who don't have to stump up for an independent school.

[Lurkedforever1]

bojo except for very rural areas it could be done if anyone really wanted to try. Church schools, along with some privates and grammars have dc coming from miles, You could work it either by holding the classes at a central point or rotating round the schools, whichever works best. With timetabling so dc would attend for a half or full day at a time, rather than for single lessons.

[Badbadbunny]

except for very rural areas it could be done if anyone really wanted to try. Church schools, along with some privates and grammars have dc coming from miles

My son has to be up and out of the house by 7.30 to walk/bus the 5 miles to his school in our main town (we're in a village just on the outskirts). (1 mile walk to the main road bus stop outside the village and a mile from the city centre bus station to his school!).

If he'd gone to another popular school across the county border, some 20 miles away, he could get the 8.00 am direct bus virtually door to door with no walking as it comes straight through the village and stops virtually outside the school gates.

Sometimes, distance isn't a problem, it's crazy bus routes that can often mean quicker/easier to go large distances than short!

[Lurkedforever1]

That's exactly what I mean bad. We're semi rural, and it's similar here. But it could be reorganised. With very rural areas though it may not be possible however you reorganise, just because by the time you'd got enough pupils for a cohort they'd be too spread out.

[HPFA]

Has anyone thought about how new grammars will be re-introduced? Graham Brady in today's Telegraph has an easy solution. Basically, an existing grammar should be able to expand "without jumping through hoops" (those hoops presumably being objections from the inconvenient parents whose kids will be in the new secondary moderns)and a new grammar can set up as a free school if a few parents want it.
So, let's see what that would mean in practice. You live in a town with a great comp but a few parents want a grammar. They get one and the comp becomes a de facto secondary modern, because if you have a bright child you'll almost certainly feel obliged to choose the grammar even if you would have preferred a genuine comp. And it won't matter if, 80% or even 90% of the people in that town want a comp rather than a grammar and a secondary modern, they won't get any say in it. It won't help if your local council disapproves because they have no power to stop a free school.
"Take back control?" What a joke

[bojorojo]

The proposal in Maidenhead was for a satellite school of Sir William Borlase's school which is over the border in Marlow, Bucks. Lots of children from Maidenhead already go there. I would imagine there are lots of grammar schools that could expand in this way. It will damage the comprehensives to an extent but in some ways they are not truly comprehensive at the moment if so many go to a nearby grammar school.

Regarding new free schools, they could be selective schools if the rules are changed to allow them to be. It only takes a few parents to set one up.

I think schools sharing expertise, is, on the face of it, is sensible. However parents may not be quite so keen if the pooled resource ends up being in the RI school and not the Outstanding school chosen by the parents. Schools often cooperate but the logistics of moving children and teachers is often seen as one step too many. I know of federated special schools where this model works well, but they are small schools with very special facilities and staff.

[HPFA]

Regarding new free schools, they could be selective schools if the rules are changed to allow them to be. It only takes a few parents to set one up.

But that was my point Bojorojo a few parents could effectively change the education system of a whole town!

At the moment if you want to change a grammar/ secondary modern town to a comp town you have to hold a ballot of all parents. Yet under Graham Brady's proposals the reverse wouldn't apply -you could turn a comp town into a grammar/sec mod town even if the majority were opposed. I would have thought even the most fervent supporters of selection would see the basic injustice of that.

[Peregrina]

One thing which will almost certainly happen if more Grammar Schools are allowed, is that some smaller independent secondary schools will go to the wall, as middle class parents just don't see the point of shelling out £15k a year. There could be a boom in little private prep schools which prepare for the 11+.

[HPFA]

smaller independent secondary schools will go to the wall, as middle class parents just don't see the point of shelling out £15k a year

Possibly, although they will be able to appeal to those parents who don't feel quite the same enthusiasm for those fabulous secondary moderns when it's their own children going to them, rather than other people's.