Two schools win academy status (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

South Craven and Skipton Girls become academies, while Ilkley Grammar given green light to apply

8:59am Thursday 5th May 2011 in Glusburn By Michael Black

Education Secretary Michael Gove

Two schools have been given academy status and another school is a step closer to receiving the designation.

Skipton Girls’ High School and South Craven School, in Cross Hills, have become the first in the Craven area to become academies.

Meanwhile, Education Secretary Michael Gove has cleared the way for Ilkley Grammar School to become an academy.

The oversubscribed school has received an Academy Order from the secretary of state, paving the way for hundreds of thousands of pounds of potential extra funding, and independence from local authority control The school is now consulting with parents and the community, and can assign solicitors to look into issues surrounding academy status before school governors make a final decision.

The academy bid follows the scrapping of school rebuild plans under the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme last year, But head teacher Gillian James said Ilkley Grammar would keep its admissions policies, as well as its name and its place as a comprehensive state school if it did opt to be an academy.

Academies are not bound by National Curriculum requirements, although they are still required to teach English, maths and science. It could also have greater freedom to buy in services.

Meanwhile, South Craven School converted to academy status on May 1.

Its new status will also benefit its partner school, Aireville, in Skipton.

Chairman of the governors Iain Harris said: “The school has been at the forefront of innovation over the past eight years.”

And head teacher Andrew Cummings said: “We look to the future with a great deal of confidence."

While the school will now be supported by the South Craven Academy Trust, it will continue to be known as South Craven School.

Aireville School said it was delighted to be working with South Craven School as they had a strong history of collaborative working.

They are also working together to develop innovative ways of raising the achievement and aspirations of their most able learners.

Meanwhile, Skipton Girls’ has just been reaffirmed as “outstanding” by Government Ofsted inspectors.

Head teacher Janet Renou said academy status was a major step forward.

• Read the full story in Thursday's T&A