Revealed: Labour council schools chief and city heads set up academies firm

[dutchman]

Coventry’s Labour leaders are embroiled in controversy as it emerged the councillor in charge of city schools has set up a new business to take over schools as academies.



Councillor David Kershaw, Coventry City Council’s Labour cabinet member for education, is heading a new academy company called the West Midlands Academy Trust. It is thought to be in line to win Tory government permission to take over five struggling schools in Birmingham.

The Observer can reveal Companies House documents show the company was set up only last month, is registered to the Coventry address of 74-year-old Coun Kershaw, a loyalist of council leader Ann Lucas, and the company also includes Coventry school head teachers as directors and members.

Labour is campaigning ahead of next month’s council elections against Conservative government plans to convert all council maintained schools into academies by 2022, with freedoms from councils and direct government funding.

Coun Kershaw, ex-head of Coundon Court School, was also involved in Labour government turnaround teams going into failing schools in the 2000s.

He has been a longstanding passionate advocate of state-run comprehensive education with councils overseeing a ‘family of schools’, despite a pragmatic policy of the council working collaboratively ‘in partnership’ with Coventry’s new secondary academies.

Along with his Labour council colleagues, he has long expressed concerns about both the government’s academisation of council-maintained schools and so-called ‘free schools’ such as Finham Park II. Labour politicians including Coventry North west MP Geoffrey Robinson last week claim Finham Park II is an example of government education policy going wrong – with nearby Woodlands Academy school now under threat in merger plans with Tile Hill Wood school.

Coun Kershaw in correspondence with the government’s Department for Education last year expressed support for setting up the new free school, which is now up and running temporarily at Finham Park but is expected to relocate to the former Land Registry building in Tile Hill this September.

Coun Kershaw’s new company, of which he is listed as a director, is understood to be in line for Department for Education approval to take over the five Birmingham academies and free schools run by the troubled Perry Beeches academy chain.

Also listed as a directors are Peter Thomas, head of President Kennedy School in Coventry, Richard Kershaw, and Sarah Durkin (formerly Lucas).

Members of the new company listed include Alan East, a Coventry University law lecturer and solicitor who is standing for Labour in Bablake on May 5, and Mark Bailie, head at Finham Park School.

Conservative group leader, councillor John Blundell, said: “This needs explanation from the people involved. It raises questions about councillor Kershaw and his Labour group colleagues’ long held position on the government’s academies programme.

“There’s a big issue being made about Woodlands, Tile Hill Wood and Finham Park II. Now it emerges a councillor and a would-be councillor are setting up an academy chain, presumably with Department for Education support, to take over academies in Birmingham.”

Coun Blundell said he also believed the matter would have to be declared at the Council House and in council meetings as a potential conflict of interest.

Coun Kershaw was unavailable for comment.

[rebbonk]

This may well be innocent, but at present it does have rather a nasty 'whiff' about it. I would hope that all is above board and will be proven to be so.

[dutchman]

Labour council schools chief Kershaw responds over his new academies firm

A LEADING Coventry Labour councillor has responded to revelations about the controversial new company he set up to run schools as academies, saying it resulted from regular approaches to him by the government and others.

But councillor David Kershaw, Coventry City Council’s cabinet member for education, said his West Midlands Academy Trust will not ‘be involved’ in the beleaguered Perry Beeches academy which runs five troubled academy and free schools in Birmingham, despite earlier speculation of a takeover.

Coun Kershaw was responding to the Coventry Observer after we revealed details of the trust company set up last month, registered to his Coventry address with the involvement of two Coventry school heads, fellow Labour local election candidate Alan East, and others.

Coun Kershaw, in a statement released to us, also sought to play down any suggestion of political hypocrisy, as a Labour councillor and long-time passionate advocate of the state comprehensive education system run by local councils.

Coun Kershaw’s statement reads: “Politically, I am implacably opposed to forced academisation and passionately believe that good local authority education departments, led by excellent and committed officers, in partnership with head teachers and governors and with strong political support and leadership, can provide the best schools and support for children and young people.

“But I am also a pragmatist, as are my political colleagues on Coventry City Council. The government is absolutely committed to turn all schools into academies and when this became clear several years ago we took the decision that we would not let the children of Coventry down by refusing to work in partnership with academies and free schools.

“My priority has always been to the children and young people in Coventry and doing what I can to give them the best possible start in life. That priority has driven me for many years and has never diminished.

“But I have also been asked, again over many years, to give help, advice and support to schools across the country who want to improve and successive governments have asked me to do this work on their behalf.

“So my involvement in helping children across the country get a better education is nothing new; it is something I have been doing for many years and something I want to continue to do as long as others feel I can offer some expertise, advice and support to schools.

“The Department for Education and other local education authorities approach me on a regular basis to share what we have done in Coventry by working alongside and in partnership with academies to deliver the best possible education for our young people. Coventry is seen as leading the way in this area.

“As a consequence West Midlands Academy Trust – a charitable trust which would not take any profit from its work – has been set up in order to provide wider support to schools. Contrary to national and local speculation it will not be involved in the Perry Beeches academy chain.

“The trust has had no conversations with the council with regards to any Coventry school. If the work of the Trust develops over the coming months I will ensure there is no conflict of interest with my role as Cabinet Member for Education in Coventry; I will continue to make the right decisions for Coventry children – just as I have always done.”