Our monthly Free Schools Round-Up provides you with education news from the last month, featuring key updates on the individual free school waves and free school and academy news highlights.
August 2022
The past month has been a very busy one for news, most notably with the incredibly sad announcement of the death of HRM Queen Elizabeth II. The United Kingdom has seen a new Prime Minister and a new Head of State in the space of two weeks, with Liz Truss winning the Conservative leadership election and King Charles III taking up the throne. Whilst our next monthly round-up will look deeper into what this means for education, the monthly Free Schools Round-Up below will provide you with news from the last month, featuring key updates on GCSE and A-level results, as well as other education insights.
Free School Wave Update
Mainstream Wave 15
The deadline to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) form is fast approaching; proposers have until 5 pm on Friday 16th September to complete their EOI, and until the 30th of November to complete the full application for a new mainstream free school. You must complete an EOI in order to apply in this wave, though it holds you to no obligation.
You can do so here.
Special Wave
The application window for local authorities is open now. Pre-registered local authorities have until 21st October to submit their applications. Proposer groups will be able to apply to open special free schools early next year.
Alternative Provision Wave
The window for Alternative Provision pre-registration will be launching soon with the deadline marked as 17th October. Alternative Provision free school proposers should ensure they have pre-registered, whilst continuing discussions with potential partners and local authorities.
Free Schools in the News: This Month's Top Stories
The Department for Education is set to collect data from local authorities on the physical capacity of special schools and SEND units in mainstream schools, following growing pressure on the high-needs system.
29 local authorities have applied to launch multi-academy trusts, following a Department for Education scheme to build momentum surrounding their drive towards academisation.
Key trends following GCSE results day 2022, including the North-South divide and the disadvantage gap.
Polls suggest teachers, young people and parents are in favour of reforming the current exam systems in England due to the harmful impact on the wellbeing of students. The current system has been criticised for taking the enjoyment aspect from learning, with 3/4 of teachers and 7/10 students backing reforms to the current system.
Following A-level results day this year, a record high of 425,830 students aged 18 will be taking a place at university, with 83% of entries for A-level at grade C or above.
92-year-old Derek Skipper achieves a grade 5 in GCSE maths exam, becoming the oldest person in Britain to pass a GCSE exam.
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