Heart Academies Trust parents head to Parliament

Heart Academy meet Angela Raynor and Yasin

Parents and children representing Shackleton, Cauldwell and Shortstown primary schools met with Angela Rayner plus Bedford and Kempston MP Mohammad Yasin.

Earlier this month the Times & Citizen reported that the HEART Academies Trust was set to implement the scheme at the three schools.

The proposal was then put on hold last week, but interviews for a new ‘executive headteacher’ role still took place on Thursday and Friday.

After the meeting Mr Yasin said: “I am standing with the parents because I share their belief that replacing experienced and dedicated teaching staff with inexperienced staff and executive heads cannot improve educational outcomes for children.

“It is appalling that parents and just about everybody else has been locked out of discussions about big changes at the schools and that there is no mechanism in place for schools to change their mind or to return to local authority if they wish.”

Mr Yasin also pointed to wider issues in education and the academies system more generally.

He added: “Our schools have had their budgets cut year after year, we have a teacher retention and morale crisis, and teachers are being forced to ask parents for money for the most basic provisions.

“Yet the headteachers of multi-academy trusts are earning huge salaries from public funds, and there is little or no transparent accountability about how public funds are being managed.

We must end the current free schools and academies programmes and move towards a new system where all schools follow the same rules, and parents, local communities and teachers have meaningful power over the schools in their areas.”

Plans to make headteachers redundant put on hold

School bosses accused of “betrayal”

Parents’ response

Reasons for the proposed changes

Details of the proposed changes

What comes next?