BT, Mossbourne Academy and the Harris Federation named among sponsors of new academies
The government has announced the sponsors of new academies being built as part of the Targeted Basic Need Programme.
Top businesses and schools, including BT, Mossbourne Academy and the Harris Federation, are among the sponsors of 39 new academies being built under the government’s Targeted Basic Need Programme (TBNP), Schools Minister David Laws announced today.
The new academies, first announced in July 2013 and due to be completed in 2015, will provide around 19,000 new school places in councils with the greatest need.
The TBNP was launched in March this year. It gave councils facing pressure on school places the chance to bid for additional money to build new schools or expand existing good ones.
The funding for the TBNP is part of the government’s £5 billion expenditure on creating new school places over the current spending review period up to 2015. This is more than double the amount spent by the last government over an equivalent 4-year period.
Forty-one new schools and 331 expansions will be funded under the programme, at a cost of around £820 million. The programme will create more than 70,000 additional school places by 2015.
Announcing the sponsors today, Schools Minister David Laws said:
Today’s announcement is a key milestone in our multi-billion pound plan to ensure there are enough high-quality school places around the country.
The sponsors we have announced today are top-performing organisations that will use their expertise and know-how to ensure young people receive the high-quality education they deserve.
Councils that successfully bid for new schools invited proposals to establish the new schools and provided the government with a list of potential sponsors. Sponsors for 39 of the new academies have been announced today. Two councils are still working with the department to finalise their plans and will be confirmed shortly.
The sponsors include:
The Harris Federation in London
The Harris Federation is an education charity with almost 25 years’ experience of running schools in and around London. It currently sponsors 27 academies. Nine of its 12 inspected secondary academies have been rated by Ofsted as ‘outstanding’ and the other 3 are rated ‘good’. Its primary academies, which are generally newer, improved performance between 2012 and 2013 on every measure that is assessed. Its aim is to provide a happy and successful education for the children and teenagers in its academies.
Harris will sponsor a new primary academy in South Croydon.
Mossbourne Community Academy Trust in London
This trust was established by the Mossbourne Community Academy in Hackney. Mossbourne transformed the predecessor school - Hackney Downs School - from being one of the worst schools in the country to one of the best after it became an academy in 2004. It now wants to extend this expertise and track record to other schools in London.
Mossbourne is sponsoring a new academy in Hackney.
Durrington High School in Worthing
Durrington is an academy converter in Worthing with a strong track record locally for supporting other schools to improve. It will work with the Livingstone Foundation. The Livingstone Foundation is being set up by the Executive Chairman of Eidos Interactive - developers of the Tomb Raider series - Ian Livingstone, to open free schools and academies that will focus on coding and computer science.
Durrington is sponsoring a new academy in Worthing.
BT
BT is a global leader in telecommunications. It provides first-class business strategic management expertise to academies in Manchester, Sussex and Hackney, ensuring they are supported and challenged to run good schools.
BT is sponsoring a new academy in Manchester.
There are 5 new sponsors among those announced - Educate Together in Bristol, Newbridge Academy in Oldham, Carillion in Tameside, Floreat in Wandsworth and Durrington High School in West Sussex.
Councils will now choose contractors to build the new academies. The new sponsors will make preparations to open their new academies, designing curriculums, hiring staff and securing a funding agreement with the department. All new academies should be open by 2015.
Notes to editors
A list of new academies and their sponsors is below:
| Local authority | Project | Phase | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bradford | Douglas Road - BD4 8QW | Secondary | Bradford Diocesan Academies Trust |
| Bristol | Avonvale Road - BS5 9RH | Primary | Educate Together |
| Bristol | Markesbury - BS3 5JL | Primary | Oasis Community Learning |
| Bristol | Fairlawn Road - BS6 5JL | Primary | Colston’s Girls’ School Trust |
| Cambridgeshire | Ely - CB6 2WH | Primary | Active Learning Trust |
| Croydon | Segas - CR0 1YL | Primary | Oasis Community Learning |
| Croydon | South Croydon - CR2 6HS | Primary | Harris Federation |
| Croydon | South Norwood - SE25 4QL | Secondary | Oasis Community Learning |
| Croydon | Westways - CR0 2UR | Primary | GLF Schools |
| Croydon | Spices Yard - CR0 2AN | Primary | STEP Academy Trust |
| Doncaster | Grady Road DN4 5UB | Primary | Wakefield City Academies Trust |
| East Sussex | Newhaven - BN9 9JL | Primary | Lilac Sky Academy Trust |
| East Sussex | Hailsham - BN27 3NW | Primary | Lilac Sky Academy Trust |
| Essex | Braiswick - CO4 5UB | Primary | The Learning Pathways Academy Trust |
| Essex | Harlow - CM20 1NW | Primary | REAch2 Academy Trust |
| Hackney | East Wick - E5 8JY | Primary | Mossbourne Community Academy Trust |
| Hillingdon | Uxbridge - St Andrews Road | Primary | Elliot Foundation |
| Hillingdon | Hayes - UB3 1JA | Primary | The Park Federation Academy Trust |
| Hillingdon | Yiewsley - UB7 9AE | Primary | LDBS Frays Academy Trust |
| Kent | Isle of Sheppey - ME12 3GN | Primary | Oasis Community Learning |
| Kent | London Road - ME19 5AT | Primary | Valley Invicta Academies Trust |
| Kent | Snodland - ME6 5PD | Primary | Valley Invicta Academies Trust |
| Kent | Kings Hill - ME19 4QG | Primary | Valley Invicta Academies Trust |
| Kent | Folkestone - CT19 6DT | Primary | Lilac Sky Academy Trust |
| Lincolnshire | Gainsborough - DN21 1PY | Primary | Tall Oaks Academy Trust |
| Manchester | Harpurhey - M40 7US | Primary | British Telecom |
| Medway | Chatham - ME4 6NT | Primary | RGS/AFS Thinking Schools Academy Trust with First Eduation Alliance and Marmox UK Ltd |
| Oldham | Hollinwood Avenue - OL9 8EE or Rock Street - OL1 3US | Special | New Bridge Academy |
| Plymouth | Derriford - PL6 5AA | Primary | Diocese of Exeter |
| Poole | Fourways - BH14 0PZ | Primary | Aspirations Academies Trust |
| Reading | Hodsall Road - RG1 7HL | Primary | REAch2 Academy Trust |
| Rotherham | Eastwood - S65 1TF | Primary | Central Learning Partnership Trust |
| Sheffield | Attercliffe - S9 3TL | Primary | Oasis Community Learning |
| Staffordshire | West Midlands - ST18 0DD | Primary | REAch2 Academy Trust |
| Swindon | Tadpole Farm - SN26 8DZ | Primary | Diocese of Bristol Academies Trust (DBAT) |
| Tameside | Ashton under Lyne - O16 9SD | Primary | Carillion Academies Trust |
| Tameside | Hattersley - SK14 3JZ | Primary | Carillion Academies Trust |
| Wandsworth | Earlsfield Ward - SW18 3BU | Primary | Floreat Education Academies Trust (FEAT) |
| West Sussex | Worthing - BN14 8HJ | Secondary | Durrington High School |
The Targeted Basic Need Programme was announced in March 2013.
The successful bids were announced in July 2013.
Forty-five new academies and 333 expansions were due to be completed by 2015, at a total cost of around £820 million. However, councils have decided to open a free school in 3 instances, and one new academy plan has been withdrawn. Two expansions have also been withdrawn. This means the programme will now deliver 41 new academies and 331 expansions.
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