Free schools and the moral purpose of education

Project title:

Free schools and the moral purpose of education

“[This project] will evaluate the impact of SAT free schools in socio-economically deprived and ethnically diverse communities in meeting the needs of their [constituents].”

Researcher:

Project proposal:

The Academies Act of 2010 established free schools in England, an initiative that has grown in popularity. The policy discourse underpinning education generally, and free schools particularly, focused on competition and community engagement to build schools to provide stronger educational opportunities, higher educational standards and the potential to lessen the gap between socio-economically advantaged and disadvantaged communities. The introduction of free schools, however, was not without controversy, particularly with the growth of multi-academy trusts (MATs) and their power within the education sector. While MATs dominate the free school sector, single academy trust (SATs) free schools have emerged as responders to their communities’ educational needs. SATs often represent parents, teachers or local religious organisations’ vision of education for their children. It is argued that SATs are uniquely positioned at a grassroots level to embody the vision of the free school. The existing research, however, is largely focused on policy evaluation. There is little focus on community groups in SATs driving educational change.

The research project, which is designed as four case studies, will evaluate the impact of SAT free schools in socio-economically deprived and ethnically diverse communities in meeting the needs of their students, their communities and fulfilling the moral purpose of education. The case studies will provide a broad base for understanding how free schools with a faith ethos can navigate community and national policy needs, how they address the educational issues within socio-economically deprived communities and how they are challenged within this milieu. This will add to the existing research providing another lens to understand the complexities of free schools in these settings.

Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

Themes: