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Parents fight new academy sponsorship in High Court
Tim Ross, Education Correspondent5 Nov 2008
PARENTS go to court today in a battle over a new school that threatens to derail the Government's academies programme.
They claim Schools Secretary Ed Balls failed to follow EU law by approving plans for an academy in Camden, in the face of opposition.
The High Court will be asked to overturn the deal in which University College London was awarded sponsorship of the school.
Solicitors fighting the proposed UCL academy in Adelaide Road cite European legislation that says all government contracts - including for new schools - should be open to bidders from anywhere in the EU. They claim the application for judicial review could force ministers to change the way sponsors are found for academies. Some sponsors would be far less likely to sign up if they had to compete.
Gillian Chandler, a mother from Kentish Town who is bringing the case, said she feared the school would become dominated by wealthy families. Miss Chandler, 39, told the Standard: "As an academy I feel they will take the top children only.
"We need the money they were going to use to build the academy to be ploughed back into the schools we have already got." The proposed UCL academy will teach ages from 11 upwards and specialise in maths, science and languages. It is due to open in September 2011.
Residents, backed by Labour figures including former health secretary Frank Dobson, wanted a new comprehensive to meet demand for school places. But schools minister Jim Knight rejected their arguments. EU procurement law did not apply to the selection of sponsors for academies, he said. "Sponsors invest in the school rather than profit from their involvement," he said.
A Camden council spokeswoman said the authorities' actions over the academy "were entirely lawful".
