Council-run schools more likely to be ‘outstanding’

A new report by the Local Government Association has claimed that schools which remain with their council are more likely to keep a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ Ofsted rating than those which become an academy.

The report looks at how primary and secondary schools’ Ofsted grades have fared over the past five years, comparing those which remained council-maintained to those that have become academies. It also found that schools that were rated as ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate’ were more likely to become ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ if they remained council-maintained and did not convert to an academy.

Studying an overall sample of 12,814 schools which remained maintained, and 4,033 schools which academised, between February 2014 and February 2019, the LGA found that 90 per cent of schools remaining council-maintained have kept their ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ rating, compared to 81 per cent of schools which converted to academies.

Furthermore, 88 per cent of schools ‘requiring improvement’ or judged ‘inadequate’ in February 2014 which remained maintained became ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ in 2019, compared with 59 per cent of schools which converted to academies.

Under current rules, councils are stopped from helping, even in cases where a failing school cannot find an academy sponsor. However, as part of its #CouncilsCan campaign, the LGA is calling for councils to be allowed to intervene and improve all types of school found to be inadequate – regardless of whether it is a maintained school or academy.

Anntoinette Bramble, chair of the LGA’s Children and Young People Board, said: “We all aspire to seeing children get an education of the highest quality, whether that is in an academy or a council-maintained school. These findings clearly show that staying under council control delivers better results for a school than those which convert to an academy.

“Not only do more schools keep a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ rating if they remain maintained, but a significantly greater proportion are being turned around from struggling or failing into highly performing and successful schools. While academisation might be the answer in some cases, it is not always the best solution. Councils have an excellent track record in improving schools, and need to be given the necessary powers to intervene and support schools.”