Opinions

Join the free for all

To begin this new feature on guest views about opportunities and threats in the independent schools sector, Zenna Atkins debates whether free schools represent an opportunity or a threat for independent education providers

Any loosening of state control over education is a good thing for the independent sector. For many years, independent schools have had to demonstrate an understanding of what parents want and need for the education of their children. Commercial pressures, coupled with a drive to distinguish their offering from the state sector, have forced independent education providers to invest in aligning their appeal with the desire of the customer: parent, pupil, future employer. This puts the sector in a strong position to support parents in setting up free schools.

This reform is centred on a desire to give parents not only choice, but power and control. At the same time, we must recognise that few parents have the experience, skills and knowledge needed to run and manage schools. Inevitably, there has been a charge by consultants and companies to offer marketplace “assistance” in helping set up a free school.

What you do best
I have no doubt that these businesses can offer everything from HR to health and safety advice, but they are not educators: this is where the independent school sector has a great opportunity. As educators with a long track record of running successful businesses in education – and of putting children and their parents at the heart of what they do – the sector has the expertise to be the driving force behind free schools.

There is no reason why independent schools cannot run chains of free schools on behalf of parents. By drawing on the high value of the existing independent schools brand, they can market to parents and pupils and grow the schools based on new parental demand.

From the ground up
To start the ball rolling effectively, schools will need to target specific localities and evaluate the demand for free schools within that area. They must offer parents a credible and sustainable way to run schools and deliver value for them.

Building chains of free schools allows both the parents and the independent school to benefit from economies of scale, a sharing of resources, increased purchasing power and reduced overhead costs. It is good business sense. The independent sector has much to offer this market.

Strong brands, experience, a customer-focused model: I am in no doubt that many independent schools will soon have their own free-school family. The real challenge will be seeing how we can use free schools to transform learning from traditional chalk-and-talk to a learning environment that is modern, international and exciting.

From the heart
Parents must be at the heart of this movement. They know that each child learns differently and must be stimulated in different ways. Yet, in many cases, children are educated in a one-size-fits-all model. It is vital that schools evolve not only to personalise the content of what a child is learning, but also in the way they are taught.

The free-schools agenda is also an opportunity to take what many independent schools have long said about the use of technology in learning and apply it more widely. It is wrong that parents and pupils are often using far more sophisticated technology at home than is applied in schools. Could we do more to use technology to help parents teach their own children to break down the divisions between school and home?

I think that well-supported free schools can do a great deal to not only give more choice but to inject innovation and a fresh challenge into education. The independent sector is in pole position to lead and support this revolution. I hope that we can all relish this opportunity to do things differently, to form new relationships and to challenge what’s gone before.

Zenna Atkins is the new chief executive of GEMS Education and is the former chair of Ofsted.

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