UK teachers slam govt. harmful move

British teachers have dismissed government’s recent move to create new free school as fragmented and confusing.

The National Association of Head Teachers warned that lack of cohesive local planning means new schools are not always opened where there is most need.

The union added that local authorities, academies and central government take decisions on school places in isolation.

President of NAHT, Tony Draper said there needed to be a local agency with “oversight and clout” to work alongside local authorities and make sure there were school places where they were needed.

He went on saying that new free schools must be located where there was a need for school places, “not just at the whim of a group that want to build a free school in an area where there is already capacity.”

Official figures say at least 200,000 more primary and 80,000 more secondary places would be needed within five years.

The government said it wanted to ensure a good school place for every child.