Articles and Views

• 12/04/2013

  Nine out of ten free schools are over-subscribed

  The Daily Telegraph

  Up to ten children are competing for every place at England's most popular free school   read on »

• 01/03/2013

  The state school scramble: 13 applicants per place as thousands set to miss out on preferred choice

  The Daily Mail

  1178 children applied for the West London Free School's 120 places this year   read on »

• 20/10/2012

  Is this the strictest school in the country?

  The Mail on Sunday

  The Mail on Sunday's Jonathan Petre visits the West London Free School   read on »

• 18/10/2012

  West London Free School gets planning consent

  Hammersmith and Fulham Chronicle

  The West London Free School has secured planning consent for Palingswick House   read on »

• 04/09/2012

  Free schools will drive up standards

  by Michael Gove

  The Secretary of State for Education argues that free schools will provide all children with the choice that's currently only available to the rich   read on »

• 07/08/2012

  Why London's State Schools Are the Best in England

  The Evening Standard

  Former Labour Schools Minister Andrew Adonis explains why London's state schools are the best in England   read on »

• 17/07/2012

  The West London Free School's First Year

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young provides an end-of-term report after the WLFS's first year   read on »

• 05/07/2012

  East End Classics Centre Launched

  Cherwell

  Josephine Rabinowitz reports on the opening of a new Classics Centre in London's East End, co-sponsored by Oxford University and Birkbeck   read on »

• 03/05/2012

  The Inner Voices Choir

  The Independent

  Alice Jones describes the remarkable work being done by Ed Watkins and Ralph Allwood with the Inner Voices choir   read on »

• 14/03/2012

  Labour should support free schools

  The New Statesman

  Former Labour schools minister Andrew Adonis argues that Labour should get behind free schools – and singles out the West London Free School for praise   read on »

• 06/03/2012

  Interview with Thomas Packer, Headmaster of the WLFS

  Onesquarenote

    read on »

• 25/02/2012

  Free schools are breaking down the barrier to a decent education for all

  The Daily Telegraph

  Charles Moore on the success of the free schools' policy and the politician behind it   read on »

• 16/02/2012

  Education: Le pari anglais des écoles libres

  Les Echos

  Education is likely to be a key issue in the forthcoming French Presidential election, explains Nicolas Madelaine, who visited the West London Free School to see if such schools could work in France   read on »

• 13/02/2012

  The Free Schools Revolution

  Politics Home

  Lord Hill, a minister at the Department for Education, describes how successful the free schools programme has been   read on »

• 08/02/2012

  Flagship free school deluged as nine pupils apply for every place

  The Evening Standard

  The West London Free School has proved so popular with Hammersmith parents, that nine pupils have applied for every place   read on »

• 07/02/2012

  Michael Gove backs Tottenham Hostpur's free school plan

  The Evening Standard

  The Secretary of State for Education welcomes moves by Tottenham Hotspur FC to set up a free school   read on »

• 03/02/2012

  Free schools allow educationalists to innovate

  Total Politics

  Former Tony Blair advisor Peter Hyman runs through the check list of what you have to do to set up a free school and explains why he's setting one up in Newham   read on »

• 10/01/2012

  West London Free School to launch primary

  The Evening Standard

  The Standard's Anna Davis reports on the WLFS's plans to open a primary in 2013   read on »

• 10/01/2012

  First term report for the West London Free School

  London Loves Business

  Toby Young provides a report on the first term at the West London Free School   read on »

• 17/12/2011

  Más latín y más deporte

  La Gaceta

  An interview with Toby Young in the Spanish newspaper La Gaceta   read on »

• 16/10/2011

  The Junior Debating League

  Godolphyn & Latymer News

  A report of the first meeting of London's Junior Debating League featuring pupils in Years 7 and 8 from eight independent and state schools in Hammersmith, including the West London Free School   read on »

• 26/09/2011

  German news segment about the West London Free School

  ZDF

    read on »

• 26/09/2011

  Italian news segment about the West London Free School

  iL Fatto Quotidiano

    read on »

• 26/09/2011

  A Spanish article about the opening of the West London Free School

  Interacomonia

    read on »

• 25/09/2011

  Ancient languages shouldn't be the exclusive preserve of the private sector

  Times Educational Supplement

  Rebecca Cann, the West London Free School's head of Classics, believes all children would benefit from studying Latin   read on »

• 22/09/2011

  French radio report about the West London Free School

  France Info and Le Mouv

  To hear the report, click on "ecouter l'emission du 20-09-2011" and you'll find it at 7:09 and 8:46.   read on »

• 14/09/2011

  French television report about the opening of the West London Free School

  TF1

    read on »

• 14/09/2011

  Guardian podcast about the West London Free School

  The Guardian

  A 30-minute podcast in which assorted Guardian hacks and others discuss the opening of the West London Free School   read on »

• 09/09/2011

  Boris Johnson opens West London Free School – in pictures

  The Guardian

    read on »

• 07/09/2011

  Why I'm for this free school experiment

  The Guardian

  Guardian columnist Deborah Orr comes out in favour of free schools   read on »

• 07/09/2011

  Catapult shooting on first day at West London Free School

  The Evening Standard

  Anna David describes the character-building first day at the West London Free School in which the children were taught how to manage risk at a farm in Surrey   read on »

• 07/09/2011

  Cardinal Newman would have loved our new free school

  The Catholic Herald

  Toby Young debunks some of the myths surrounding free schools and points out that the West London Free School is based on the educational philosophy espoused by Cardinal Newman   read on »

• 06/09/2011

  Toby Young: Klasskamp med latin som vapen

  Expressen

    read on »

• 06/09/2011

  Britische Schulrevolution: Der Staat zahlt, die Eltern regieren

  Der Spiegel

    read on »

• 01/09/2011

  Closing the attainment gap

  The Spectator

  Toby Young looks forward to the official opening of the West London Free School by Boris Johnson and talks about how it was meeting people like Boris at Oxford that inspired him to get involved in education   read on »

• 31/08/2011

  "Children are biting my arm off to get in here"

  The Times

  Mary Bowers takes a tour of the West London Free School in the run-up to opening and meets Toby Young and Thomas Packer   read on »

• 30/08/2011

  Now the really hard work begins

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young writes about the triumphs and setbacks his group have experienced over the past two years and looks to the future   read on »

• 28/08/2011

  24 free schools to open this year

  The Independent

  Richard Garner, the Independent's education correspondent, describes the 24 free schools opening this year   read on »

• 14/07/2011

  What will Schools look like in 25 years time?

  The Independent

  Dr Martin Stephens, outgoing High Master of St Paul's, gazes into his crystal ball   read on »

• 26/05/2011

  Changes to the School Admissions Code will help the least well off

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young reflects on the proposed changes to the School Admissions Code and how they might affect the West London Free School   read on »

• 23/05/2011

  Michael Gove's silent schools revolution

  The Guardian

  Julian Glover argues that one of the merits of Michael Gove's educational reforms is that they will lessen the divide between state schools and private schools   read on »

• 19/05/2011

  Grammatic Irony

  The Spectatory

  Toby Young argues that not teaching grammar in schools preserves privilege and entrenches poverty   read on »

• 16/05/2011

  Inner-city academy that's a blueprint for the future

  The Daily Telegraph

  The Evelyn Grace Academy in Brixton, sponsored by ARK, is a model of what good, inner-city schools should be   read on »

• 11/05/2011

  The New Labour free school

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young writes about the free school being set up by Tony Blair's head of strategy at Number 10 Downing Street   read on »

• 22/03/2011

  Free schools are an opportunity, not a threat

  The Evening Standard

  Antony Seldon, the Master of Wellington College, argues that independent schools should be embracing free schools and offering them help, not trying to obstruct them   read on »

• 21/03/2011

  It just got harder for parents to set up schools

  The Daily Telegraph

  The Department for Education has tightened the approval process for groups wanting to set up free schools. According to Toby Young, this will make it much harder for parents to set up schools from now on   read on »

• 09/03/2011

  Is it racist to steer under-achieving black children towards vocational courses?

  The Independent

  Black PhD student Michael Mumisa argues that there's nothing inherently racist about Oxbridge colleges. It's the teachers who steer black children towards vocational courses who are guilty of racism   read on »

• 02/03/2011

  First free school gets go-ahead

  The BBC

  BBC Education's Angela Harrison reports on the government's decision to give the West London Free School a green light to open in September   read on »

• 02/03/2011

  Howard Jacobson: Here's why the elite are in charge

  The Independent

  Howard Jacobson explains why he believes Michael Gove's education reforms are every bit as important as reducing the deficit   read on »

• 15/02/2011

  West London Free School considers switch in temporary site

  The Hammersmith and Fulham Chronicle

  The Chronicle's Dan Hodges on the proposal to switch the temporary site of the West London Free School from the Bryony Centre to the Cambridge School   read on »

• 09/02/2011

  445 children apply to the West London Free School

  H&F News

  445 children have applied for places this September at the West London Free School   read on »

• 25/01/2011

  Interview with Thomas Packer, Headmaster of the West London Free School

  The Evening Standard

  The Standard's Stephen Robinson interviews Tom Packer, the WLFS's newly-appointed head   read on »

• 23/01/2011

  Bullies, liars and hypocrites are trying to kill our school

  The Daily Mail

  Toby Young dissects the opposition to the West London Free School   read on »

• 17/01/2011

  H&F Council identifies possible home for West London Free School

  Hammersmith and Fulham Chronicle

  Palingswick House has been identified as the likely site of the West London Free School, according to the Chronicle's Dan Hodges   read on »

• 12/12/2010

  The runaway success of the French Lycée

  The Guardian

  The French Lycée is a non-selective school in Kensington funded by the French government, yet 99% of its pupils gain 5 GCSEs at grade C or above, including Maths and English. How do they do it? A classical curriculum and an old-fashioned approach to teaching and learning   read on »

• 07/12/2010

  Britain's schoolchildren now ranked 23rd in the world, down from 12th in 2000

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young on the shocking findings of the OECD's latest PISA report   read on »

• 15/11/2010

  Views sought on West London Free School

  Hammersmith & Fulham News

  An article in H&F News about the proposal to establish a free school in Hammersmith & Fulham   read on »

• 29/10/2010

  West London Free School begins consultation

  The Fulham & Hammersmith Chronicle

  In an interview in the Fulham & Hammersmith Chronicle, Toby Young sets out his vision for a new school in the borough   read on »

• 29/10/2010

  The biggest threat facing Free Schools is the enemy within

  The Daily Telegraph

  The Telegraph's Benedict Brogan dissects the opposition to Michael Gove's Free Schools policy   read on »

• 20/10/2010

  School budgets won't be cut over the course of this Parliament

  The Daily Telegraph

  Michael Gove emerges from the Comprehensive Spending Review as one of the big winners, having protected schools from the cuts   read on »

• 15/10/2010

  What does the treatment of Tom Daley tell us about state education?

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young argues that the relentless bullying of diving champion Tom Daley at his comprehensive tells us a great deal about the culture of under-achievement that bedevils the state education sector   read on »

• 10/10/2010

  Courageous deputy head dares to challenge state school orthodoxy

  The Daily Mail

  Katharine Birbalsingh, deputy head of a struggling Academy in Camberwell, speaks out the tyranny of low expectations in Britain's state education system   read on »

• 10/10/2010

  British pupils divided by race, gender and class

  The Observer

  According to a new report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Britain's poorest children are being comprehensively failed by the state education system   read on »

• 20/09/2010

  Children can now get GCSEs in brushing teeth

  The Daily Mail

  The number of school children taking vocational courses has increased from 22,500 in 2003/04 to 540,000 in 2008/09   read on »

• 13/09/2010

  Interview with Toby Young about West London Free School

  Attain magazine

  An even-handed account of the West London Free School and the man leading the campaign by Tim Johnson   read on »

• 09/09/2010

  Why parents and teachers are setting up schools

  The Independent

  Why are parents and teachers from all over England setting up their own schools? Includes a round-up of the 16 schools in the first wave   read on »

• 08/09/2010

  Let battle commence in our efforts to set up a new school

  Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young explains why his group decided not to outsource the management of the school and describes the next steps in the process now that the West London Free School has been given the go-ahead   read on »

• 06/09/2010

  Michael Gove announces first wave of Free Schools

  BBC News

  Michael Gove has set out the details of the first 16 Free Schools   read on »

• 02/09/2010

  The secret war over England's schools

  The Spectator

  Fraser Nelson and Ed Howker reveal the underhand methods the NUT and others are using to sabotage the government's education policy   read on »

• 14/08/2010

  Firms line up to help parents run free schools

  BBC News

  Various charitable and commercial education providers are working with groups hoping to set up free schools   read on »

• 04/08/2010

  Premier League to set up free schools

  The Guardian

  Richard Scudamore, the Premier League's chief executive, has approached the Department for Education to inquire about setting up some free schools with a sports-based curriculum   read on »

• 27/07/2010

  Pupil Premium for Children from Low Income Families

  Department for Education

  Michael Gove and Sarah Teather announce that the pupil premium to help disadvantaged children will be available from 2011   read on »

• 16/07/2010

  Plan for Ealing Free School still on track

  The Ealing Gazette

  The West London Free School still plans to open in doors in September, 2011   read on »

• 15/07/2010

  Why I changed my mind about school reform

  Diane Ravitch

  George W Bush's education tsar explains why she's changed her mind about charter schools   read on »

• 11/07/2010

  Michael Gove to help schools most in need

  BBC News

  The Secretary of State for Education says the cancellation of the BSF programme does not mean that new schools won't be built or inadequate schools rebuilt   read on »

• 06/07/2010

  Labour's school buildings programme was a model of inefficiency

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young defends Michael Gove's decision to scrap Building Schools for the Future, Labour's £55 billion capital expenditure programme   read on »

• 25/06/2010

  Government brings back competitive sport

  The Daily Mail

  Competitive games are to be revived in schools in a bid to turn Britain back into a nation of sporting champions.   read on »

• 21/06/2010

  The gang behind the West London Free School

  The Evening Standard

  The Evening Standard's Anne McElvoy profiles the team behind the West London Free School   read on »

• 18/06/2010

  Teachers head for free schools

  BBC News

  More than 700 groups say they are interested in starting a "free school" in England - half are teachers.   read on »

• 14/06/2010

  Bring back Latin

  The Daily Telegraph

  Harry Mount on a new report by Poleteia recommending that Latin is made compulsory in state primary schools   read on »

• 14/06/2010

  Storming the school barricades

  The Wall St Journal

  The Lottery, a new documentary about American public education, portrays the enemy of excellence as the "union-political-educational complex"   read on »

• 12/06/2010

  Charles Moore on how Academies can become the new Grammars

  The Daily Telegraph

  Charles Moore argues that Academies can play the same role that grammar schools did, only without the need for an 11+   read on »

• 09/06/2010

  Stanely Fish on the virtues of a classical education

  The New York Times

  Stanley Fishes sings the praises of his own classical education and three books advocating the virtues of the classics   read on »

• 07/06/2010

  Michael Gove praises West London Free School

  Press Association

  Michael Gove has praised the efforts of the West London Free School parent and teacher group in the House of Commons   read on »

• 27/05/2010

  Toby Young vs Polly Toynbee

  Sky News

  Toby Young and Polly Toynbee debate the pros and cons of free schools on Sky News   read on »

• 26/05/2010

  What will make a school 'free'?

  BBC News

  Angela Harrison, the BBC's Education Correspondent, takes a look at the schools likely to be created now that the Government has made it easier for groups of parents and teachers to set up 'free schools'   read on »

• 15/05/2010

  If Clegg or Cameron had gone to a comprehensive, we'd never have heard of them

  The Daily Mirror

  Tony Parsons reflects on the educational apartheid that means you now have to have gone to a fee-paying school in order to get a top job   read on »

• 14/05/2010

  Department for Education returns

  BBC News

  Michael Gove's first move is to rename the Department for Children, Schools and Families the Department of Education   read on »

• 06/05/2010

  Is a 'comprehensive grammar' a contradiction in terms?

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young points out that trying to combine a grammar school curriculum with a non-selective intake is not a middle-class, Tory idea. On the contrary, it was originally the Labour Party's   read on »

• 05/05/2010

  Free Schools will be good for Britain

  The Times

  The Times comes out four square behind free schools   read on »

• 28/04/2010

  Transforming Britain's schools: A classroom revolution

  The Economist

  The Economist comes out four square behind "free schools"   read on »

• 27/04/2010

  Stephen Pollard: I'm switching to the Tories because of their schools policy

  The Times

  Jewish Chronicle editor Stephen Pollard explains why the Conervatives' education policy has got his vote   read on »

• 22/04/2010

  Parental support for school reform

  The Guardian

  650 parents who want to be involved in setting up new schools sign letter to the Guardian   read on »

• 18/04/2010

  Should parents be able to set up schools?

  The Observer

  Toby Young, Fiona Millar, Anders Hultin, Estelle Morris and Mich Brooks discuss the pros and cons of the Conservative education policy and Swedish free schools   read on »

• 16/04/2010

  Parent power is good for schools

  The Guardian

  Toby Young argues that parents should be allowed to set up schools and, if necessary, subcontract the operation of the school to a commercial education provider   read on »

• 15/04/2010

  What's the difference between Labour and the Conservatives' education policy?

  Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young tries to discover "clear blue water" between the two main parties' education policies and discovers it isn't as easy as you might think   read on »

• 02/04/2010

  The profit motive has a place in the classroom

  The Times

  Phillip Collins, a former speechwriter for Tony Blair, says we shouldn't be afraid of allowing commercial education providers to operate state schools   read on »

• 31/03/2010

  For profits to enter state education sector as school operators

  The Times

  A raft of commercial companies are poised to enter the state education sector as full service providers, operating schools under contract. This will happen regardless of who wins the next election   read on »

• 30/03/2010

  Ed Balls says no to parent group

  The Evening Standard

  Ed Balls has said no to the Kirklees parent group and yes to the Wandsworth parent group, but only on the condition that Wandsworth Council pay for the parent-promoted school with their existing BSF grant   read on »

• 26/03/2010

  Should faith schools be dismantled?

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young looks ahead to see what the future holds for faith schools and mounts a robust defence   read on »

• 19/03/2010

  Primary school admissions crisis

  The Daily Telepgraph

  More than 2000 new primary schools will be needed over the next eight years to cope with the current baby boom   read on »

• 15/03/2010

  This lunacy about Latin makes me want to weep

  The Daily Telegraph

  Boris Johnson launches a broadside against Ed Balls for declaring that Latin is pointless   read on »

• 13/03/2010

  Baby boom has schools overflowing

  The Daily Mail

  A combination of increased immigration, a baby boom and the an exodus from the private sector means there aren't enough primary school places to cope with demand   read on »

• 11/03/2010

  Parents offered first choice of second rate schools

  The Spectator

  Toby Young dissects the recent announcements regarding the number of parents who got their children into their first choice school   read on »

• 09/03/2010

  Free our schools

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young explains why he wants to open a new secondary school in Acton that offers children a classical liberal education   read on »

• 06/03/2010

  Gove wants to make primary school national curriculum more traditional

  The Times

  Shadow Schools Secretary Michael Gove promises to change the primary national curriculum so children recite poetry and learn Kings and Queens of England   read on »

• 01/03/2010

  School admissions: half lose out in some areas

  Daily Telegraph

  Over half of parents have failed to get their children into their first-choice schools in some parts of the country   read on »

• 28/02/2010

  Top-performing comprehensives engage in covert selection

  The Guardian

  New research from the Sutton Trust reveals that Britain's top comprehensives don't admit as many poor children as they should   read on »

• 21/02/2010

  What a year teaching dishes taught me about school

  The Mail on Sunday

  Toby Young makes the case for a liberal education   read on »

• 20/02/2010

  The parents who know best

  Times Educational Supplement

  The Tories have pledged to support parents who want to set up their own schools within the state sector. But what will their impact be if they are established in areas where there is already sufficient provision?   read on »

• 19/02/2010

  Swedish-style "free schools" will raise standards and, more importantly, increase choice

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young argues that the real test of Michael Gove's proposed reforms is whether they will increase parental choice   read on »

• 15/02/2010

  Rescuing adult authority in the 21st Century

  Spiked-online.com

  University of Kent sociology professor Frank Furedi advises caution on parental involvement in schools   read on »

• 09/02/2010

  Swedish-style "free schools" won't raise standards

  The Guardian

  Per Thulberg, director general of the Swedish National Agency for Education, says "free schools" have "not led to better results" in Sweden.   read on »

• 05/02/2010

  Parents should be able to set up Academies more easily says association of school heads

  The Times

  The Independent Academies Association backs Conservative plans to allow Academies to be set up even when doing so will create surplus capacity   read on »

• 04/02/2010

  Government scraps gifted and talented scheme

  The Guardian

  Is the government's decision to disband the gifted and talented programme a good thing or a tragedy?   read on »

• 02/02/2010

  Parents and teachers push to set up quasi-independent state schools

  The Times

  Parents and teachers have deluged the New Schools Network wanting to know how they can set up state secondary schools themselves   read on »

• 01/02/2010

  Can Sweden teach our schools a lesson?

  The Independent

  Richard Garner visits Hampton Community College, the first school in Britain to be run by Kunskapsskolan, the for-profit Swedish provider   read on »

• 29/01/2010

  Toby Young vs Fiona Millar

  Times Educational Supplement

  Toby Young and Fiona Millar argue about the pros and cons of free schools   read on »

• 25/01/2010

  We could learn a lot from a school in Kenya

  The Daily Telegraph

  Cassandra Jardine reports on Starehe School, a remarkable Kenyan success story that could provide a model for British schools   read on »

• 24/01/2010

  Should parents set up their own state schools?

  The Observer

  Fed up with their educational options, more and more parents are detemined to build their own local schools. But is this really the answer to our classroom crisis? In a special report, parents, educators and activists reveal the hard lessons they're learning   read on »

• 23/01/2010

  Nick Gibb talks about the Conservatives' education policy

  Attain

  Matthew Smith, the editor of Attain magazine, grills Nick Gibb MP, a shadow education minister, about the Conservatives' plans to revitalise the state sector   read on »

• 16/01/2010

  Michael Gove versus the Blob

  The Spectator

  Dennis Sewell believes the cage fight between Michael Gove and the educational establishment will be the most thrilling political battle of Cameron's first hundred days   read on »

• 13/01/2010

  Catholic Church comes out in favour of "free schools"

  The Daily Telegraph

  Bishop Malcolm McMahon, the Catholic bishop with the education portfolio in the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, has backed the Conservatives’ proposal for “free schools”.   read on »

• 07/01/2010

  The difficulties of starting a 'free school'

  The Daily Telegraph

  Toby Young describes just how difficult it is to start a 'free school' and suggests ways of making it easier   read on »

• 18/12/2009

  Steve Pound has got wrong end of stick

  Ealing Gazette

  Toby replies to Steve Pound's attack on his free school plans   read on »

• 18/12/2009

  Schools plan is Pandora's Boz

  Ealing Gazette

  Steve Pound MP takes Toby to task for his plans to start a free school in Acton   read on »

• 14/12/2009

  Parent groups wanting to set up schools should not wait for the Tories

  The Guardian

  Toby Young argues that parents wanting to set up schools have no need to wait for a regime change. They can do it under the present rules.   read on »

• 14/12/2009

  Parents enticed by prospect of free schools

  The Guardian

  Over 300 parent groups have emerged, poised to take advantage of Conservative plans to make it easier for parents to set up schools   read on »

• 10/12/2009

  Is parent power good for schools?

  The Times

  Lisa Freedman takes parents to task for thinking they could do a better job than others at running schools   read on »

• 03/12/2009

  Fiona Millar attacks Parent Promoted Schools

  The Guardian

  Fiona Millar argues that Parent Promoted Schools will damage existing secondary schools in their neighbourhoods   read on »

• 03/12/2009

  Balls Attacks Conservative Education Plans

  The Guardian

  Ed Balls says the Conservatives' education plans will result in a two-tier system, with high-performing academic schools for a small minority and second-class schools for the majority   read on »

• 22/11/2009

  The man in Whitehall does not know best

  The Sunday Telegraph

  Matthew d'Ancona takes Ed Balls to task for believing more central control, not less, is the solution to our educational problems   read on »

• 22/11/2009

  Just how hard is it to set up a new school?

  The Observer

  Toby Young provides an update on the progress his parents group has made in its efforts to set up a new secondary school in Acton   read on »

• 05/11/2009

  Parent group petitions for new school in Kirklees

  Huddersfield Daily Examiner

  A new parents group has been formed to take on the fight for a new secondary school for part of Kirlees. It wants the school to serve parts of Birkenshaw, Birstall, Gomersal and East Bierley ...   read on »

• 28/10/2009

  We need more private schools, not less: Can the Conservatives learn from Sweden's school voucher system?

  Adam Smith Institute

  Sweden introduced a voucher system in the mid-1990s. It means that if parents take their children from a municipal school and move them to an independent school, that school gets the same money from the government that it would have spent on their state education. No fees, no top-ups, not even extra charges for sports kit are allowed. So all at once, the whole population of Sweden can exercise a choice. And around 1000 new independent schools have sprung up, bringing in new ideas and much more customer focus...   read on »

• 18/10/2009

  Tories favour Swedish-inspired schools system

  Jack Grimston - October 18, 2009

  DOZENS of parents' groups, prep schools and education chains such as Montessori and Steiner have signed up to Tory plans to introduce a Swedish-inspired system of independent state schools. The New Schools Network (NSN), advised by former Blairites, is building support so new schools can open quickly if the Tories win power...   read on »

• 08/10/2009

  Vow to offer state schools independence

  Alex Barker on FT.com

  The Conservatives pledged yesterday to offer effective independence to almost a fifth of state secondary schools, setting them on a collision course with teaching unions...The move rapidly accelerates Tory plans to roll out "free schools", giving the best 500 secondary schools and top 2,000 primary schools the unconditional right to opt out of local council control...   read on »

• 08/10/2009

  Conservatives to close down worst-performing schools, says Michael Gove

  James Kirkup in The Daily Telegraph

  The Conservatives are making school reform a central part of their general election campaign, pledging ambitious changes that would allow parents and charities to set up their own schools within the state system. Some Labour critics have suggested that the “free schools” plan would only benefit middle-class parents. Speaking to the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, Mr Gove insisted that Tory reform plans will benefit children in the most deprived areas...   read on »

• 07/10/2009

  Will New Schools be the Tories' big idea?

  Paul Goodman in The Daily Telegraph

  The Tories hope a radical plan to put power in the hands of parents can do for a Cameron government what council house sales did for Margaret Thatcher – and bring hope to a generation of children. Paul Goodman assesses their chances of success...   read on »

• 25/09/2009

  Why I will set up a new school to give my children the best chance in life

  Toby Young in The Observer

  Toby Young, son of the visionary founder of the Open University, wants to break down Britain's apartheid between the private and state sectors by creating a new type of 'free' school where access to a good education is not based on income...   read on »