BSF School or Free school?

[broc]

For those of you hoping that BSF might be cancelled by the ConDems, your wish may be granted.... BUT (There's always a but....)

 

£55bn school building plan faces axe to fund Swedish-style system | Education | The Guardian

[Disease]

I for one am hoping the BSF gets canned. New buildings and IT will not improve schools if teaching standards are poor in the first instance. It's just like wallpapering over a wall with loads of cracks.

[broc]

I for one am hoping the BSF gets canned. New buildings and IT will not improve schools if teaching standards are poor in the first instance. It's just like wallpapering over a wall with loads of cracks.

I agree with your point about new buildings not making a better school; however working in a school which is well past it's use by date & has more leaks than Wales you can understand the attraction of a new building courtesy of BSF

[tech_guy]

So, meanwhile, rotting schools are left to rot away?

 

In my neck of the woods some investment in the local schools is desperately needed. Our buildings are tired and broken and not suitable for delivering 21st Century teaching.

 

We need to get Cameron and his cronies out of London to see just how bad it is here, and in many other areas around the UK. Education is the one area they can't cut funding in.

 

Our kids deserve a decent education and at the moment we're struggling to give them that in some schools because they're starved of money and the buildings are falling apart. Especially the ones built in the sixties.

[Diello]

The problem with BSF has never been building purpose built schools (apart from the money wasted on style over substance), the issue has been the insanity of shoehorning IT into the program, locked in building maintenance contracts, etc. Basically sweetners for industry.

 

If BSF was just about handing over a brand new building to a school, it would be fine, and not so over budget!

[glennda]

Especially the ones built in the sixties.

 

The main part of our school was built in the thirties! even more need for it to be rebuilt!!

[elsiegee40]

The main part of my daughter's school was built around 1905... and nothing's been done to it since! :S

[nicholab]

I would say that the buildings in the 1900 to 1940 where generally good buildings they just need kitting out with modem services. The buildings build during the 1950 to 1970 are probably the the worsted.

[dwhyte85]

Although I oppose the managed service part of the BSF... mainly as it has an effect on me and I don't think it can be considered a one size fits all solution (IT, that is) our school really needs modernisation.

 

We have temporary builds scattered used as extensions to our school, piggybacking off of existing resources within the school. To fix our current main building would cost an awful lot, it'd make greater sense to demolish and re-build. IF BSF goes, what are the other options? PFI? How many people want to lose control of the school they run?

[broc]

IF BSF goes, what are the other options? PFI? How many people want to lose control of the school they run?

 

If (when?) BSF is cut back, some of the savings will be used to fund more Academies & the Swedish style Free schools; this is in the Governments manifesto. In both cases, the Government will have to either borrow money itself (unlikely) or use PFI to rebuild/renovate schools or rent disused factory units or office blocks to be converted into schools. There is no other way given the size of the problem. A new secondary school costs £20m, a 50-60% partial rebuild/refurbishment costs £12m-14m & there are a lot of schools in need of repair after decades of neglect.

 

As far as losing control of schools, it is the Governments stated aim of having more schools become independent of local authorities. That means being free to set their own pay & conditions & decide upon curriculum amongst other things.

Edited May 18, 2010 by broc

[dwhyte85]

OK, i'm being dim. Can someone define an open school?

[broc]

OK, i'm being dim. Can someone define an open school?

Count me in too... I have never come across that one....

[timbo343]

Yeah, im also un-sure of an open/free school.

 

If it is swedish like all the furniture might be from ikea... just imagine, a school been flatpacked and you have to build it your self lol and the "open/free" might mean that you have to use open source software to run the network and servers.

[dwhyte85]

open like it doesn't have a roof or walls... that sounds like a way to save money

[torledo]

i suppose the question is, if the tories have/had a target [or aspiration] for how many school places could be provided via free schools, then you can work out how much money would be required for the free schools project. if it becomes spectacularly popular will they have to put a funding restriction and start turning people/communities away who'd like to start their own school ?

 

the idea itself sounds a lot closer to the academy model, which we know the tories seem to be quite keen on.

[broc]

The Swedish style 'Free' school is quite a radical approach, one which the Tory part of the Govt is keen to promote

 

Free school: Conservatives eye the Swedish model - Education News, Education - The Independent

[glennda]

I would say that the buildings in the 1900 to 1940 where generally good buildings they just need kitting out with modem services.

 

I thought BSF was meant to be moving IT in schools forwards not back

[Dos_Box]

The govt is, to be frank, damned as regards to spending. The previous govt spent many years on a spending spree with money it simply didn't have and shifted a lot of high profile debts 'off book'.These debts are things like PFI and some defence contracts. These debts (and I'm not sure if BSF is counted as 'off book) are going to be the first to be examined and halted if need be. It may be that a simple buildings regeneration program replaces BSF, but I think in all honesty we shall see a halt to BSF, with no announcement as to what will replace it for the forseeable future.

[GrumbleDook]

What is a free school?

Do *not* confuse a free school with Anarchistic / Democratic free schools ... but it is about free education. Presently the system is 2 tier. You are state (ie from taxes) funded or privately funded (from fees, charitable donations ... correctly called independent schools, but more commonly 'public' schools). The state funded gets broken down into a number of areas from LA controlled, foundation (was GM), trust, trust co-operative, academy, etc ... and then you also have VA schools or schools with additional financial support. It gets messy.

 

The new term of Free Schools, as used by political groups, refers to an independent-style school, but set up by anyone (there are limitations on this but I won't go there yet) ad is then funded from the same state funding stream which would have gone to the school via the LA + what appears to be the money centrally held by the LA too.

 

What does it mean to us? Likely to be along the same lines as independent schools ... but still no idea about where the buck stops with it yet. I can see all sorts of long term funding issues when it comes to grants, and there is still not a clear picture on what the school strategy is from the Govt yet. A lot of Govt agencies are in purdah and cannot comment on anything right now. We are in limbo for another few weeks.

[broc]

We should get a better view of the Govt plans when their Education Bill is outlined in the Queens Speech on May 25th. According to the BBC:

 

Top priorities are expected to be paving the way for more schools to become academies and for parents and other groups to set up schools

 

Michael Gove, the new Education Secretary, had pledged in the run-up to the election that a Conservative government would give schools judged to be "outstanding" by Ofsted inspectors an automatic right to become academies.

 

Academies are state-funded schools which are semi-independent.

 

His intention had been to legislate quickly so that schools could opt to become academies in September.

[broc]

Expect to see a lot more stories like this one in the coming months ...

 

BBC News - Politics Show - Yorkshire parents make bid for first 'free school'

[GrumbleDook]

I'm waiting for the first one run by a Teachers' union.

[glennda]

I'm waiting for the first one run by a Teachers' union.

 

that just sent shivers down my spine!!

[SteveT]

I'm waiting for the first one run by a Teachers' union.

 

........... now then, who is up for an Edugeek school. Tony as Head and a curriculum based entirely around IT!!!!

[broc]

........... now then, who is up for an Edugeek school. Tony as Head and a curriculum based entirely around IT!!!!

But who on earth would get the job of Network Manager?