Industry News
Academies receive new support
Posted on 20th July 2007
Parents are increasingly opting to enrol their children in academies, as a new report shows how they transform results in deprived areas.
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) found in an independent report that academies are making "rapid progress", with schools minister Andrew Adonis commenting that this is why they are so popular among parents.
Citing figures that academies are three times oversubscribed for the second consecutive year, Mr Adonis said: "When choosing a school that will deliver the best for their child, parents opt for academies because they like what they see."
This is "the best endorsement" of academies' increasing popularity, he said.
The PwC report shows that academies are doing particularly well in English and Maths, with academies' GCSE results in these subjects improving by six times the national rate.
Academies are set up by sponsors from the private, religious or third sectors who work with government and education partners in order to develop strategies and raise standards in disadvantaged areas, according to the Department for Schools, Children and Families.