James Kerr - Lewisham NEU Assistant District Secretary- has kindly agreed to let me publish a great article he wrote about the MAT issue - it was first published in Education for Tomorrow magazine.
Lewisham has historically had very low numbers of academies, with only 21% of secondaries privatised, compared to 80% nationally. This has been the result of hard campaigning, a resultant shift in the approach of the Local Authority and preemptive action in schools before academisation rears its head.
This is under threat as a number of governing bodies in the borough are looking to push through conversion to Multi Academy Trusts.
With big chains like Harris camped on the border and United Learning with a foothold in the borough, many of the privateer vultures will be eyeing the opportunity for breaching the dam in Lewisham and opening up new options.
A longstanding plan to form MATs of Catholic schools in South East London is gaining some momentum but one anti-academy campaign has had to become the focus of our attention.
The Leathersellers Federation, often referred to as the Prendergast Schools, are seeking to form a four school MAT from September 2023. They have set up a truncated six week consultation where they have made it clear that the only outcome is going to be to move forward with the proposal.
A parent petition demanding a vote on the proposal amassed over 1000 signatures but the Governing Board dismissed the idea by saying that binary votes are too divisive, referencing the Brexit referendum, and don't represent a range of views. They ignore the fact that they will be holding a binary vote at the end of the consultation, but at least they can be trusted to return the correct result.
The response from staff in the schools has been emphatic in opposition. Both NEU and GMB have held indicative ballots for industrial action, returning big Yes votes on super-majority turnouts and strike action is planned for after the Easter holidays.
The Governing Board have responded by pledging to sign a binding agreement guaranteeing national pay and conditions but we have pointed out that, as more schools are rebrokered and transferred between MATs, any agreement signed now can be worthless in the event of another change in employer. We are also clear that this is about more than just the staff in those schools. Taking those schools out of the Local Authority Family of Schools will reduce funds going into LA services and will give a green light to others to try and push ahead with their own plans.
Their case for the formation of the MAT is weak and largely focussed on limitations of the current governance structure. The more you scratch the surface, the clearer it becomes that this is more than just a technical change in governance and more about building a private edubusiness.
They plan to add new primary schools in the next phase and have floated the idea of opening a special school. There have been numerous references to 'lightly used playing fields' that the Federation owns and, with land a sought after commodity in South London, the temptation would be to cash in.
The Stop Academies in Lewisham campaign is seeking to replicate what we did in 2015, when the Prendergast Federation last tried conversion, and halt the process before the academy order is signed off. In 2015, strike action, walkouts and sit downs by the students and finally a successful legal challenge led to it being pulled. The Tories closed the legal loophole that led to the challenge last time and so it is clearer what needs to happen now.
The school management have tried to tightly control the narrative this time, particularly with students, who were given the hard sell in assemblies as soon as the consultation was announced but dissent is growing.
The Governing Board mistakenly published a tranche of formerly confidential minutes, with pertinent information redacted, but didn't lock the redactions on the page and so they could be removed by anyone with the right software. This unearthed some interesting discussions that have already taken place, including amending the pay policy to cherry pick what elements of the School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document to include and the inclusion of the former Headteacher from 2015, who was found to have concealed documents from the Information Commissioner.
Organisationally, we are seeking to build a mass community campaign, with strike action at its core. The Council Labour Group have passed a strong motion in opposition, the local MP has also come out against and we even have Mark Ruffalo onside; The Hulk actor, who has worked with one of the affected schools in the past, tweeted to his 8 million followers the campaign's poster.
Giving confidence, organisational and financial support to the parents campaign has also been crucial, cohering a united message about the threats to the local education system as a whole. We are organising a day when all Local Authority schools will "badge up' with the slogan 'Stronger
Together, Proud to be Lewisham Family of Schools' after the Easter holidays to develop a coherent and positive alternative to privatisation.
Having so many schools still within the LA presents potentially very exciting opportunities for genuine collaboration. The Lewisham elected Mayor stood on a programme of launching a 'Lewisham Challenge' to assist collaboration between secondary schools, similar to the 'London Challenge' under the New Labour government but, partly because of Covid, it has never come to fruition. We are pushing now for them to make good on this promise and to strengthen a shared identity.
With this in mind, we are encouraging all of our reps in LA schools to pass preemptive motions against academisation and to write to their governing bodies to seek assurances that they are not exploring conversion. This has already unearthed one plan and put others on notice.
As with any anti-academy campaign, pace and time matter. The opposition admit in their proposal that this has been 18 months in the making (although in reality probably much longer) and every day counts, especially as they've been deliberate in shortening their consultation period to the minimum of what is reasonable. Prevarication or indecision can allow the momentum to ebb away and some mistakes are inevitable. Micro-managing every element is never an option and engaging in the fight has to be done boldly. We understand that the odds are stacked against this campaign but audacity and tenacity are our watch words.
The education system is in deep crisis. Opposition to Ofsted is growing and this brings into focus the whole gamut of education 'reforms like league tables, performance related pay and privatisation. These local battles are so important right now because this government and elements of their system could be booted out in the not too distant future. If we can halt or delay conversions it buys time to build mass national campaigns for decent funding and a genuinely supportive and collaborative system with children and workers at its heart.
That is what we are fighting for and we will continue to strive to punch above our weight.
Oh wow - yes Ive heard about this and really is worrying
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