13th October 2010 9:00
By Blue Tutors
The Independent Academies Association (IAA) have called for the government to quickly draw up plans for a new school rebuilding program in the light of their scrapping the £55bn ‘Building Schools for the Future’ (BSF) scheme, which was in place under the old Labour government. In a report on the BBC, the IAA have stressed the importance of building new schools as a way to improve achievement in deprived areas. The IAA said that it recognised the need for a less costly program in these “tougher times”, but added that “it is vital that a new program is developed soon and that the importance of new buildings as a package to renew poor performing schools is recognised.”
The IAA also warned against moving away from the new vocational qualifications, such as the Diploma. It’s claimed that for less academic students, these qualifications provide genuine value, and equip students with skills that they can actually use as soon as they leave school. The government’s attempt to move away from vocational courses, and push more traditional A-levels was described as undermining the IAA’s message to their students.
A Spokesperson for the Department of Education said "We understand people's disappointment but the BSF programme was wasteful, needlessly bureaucratic and seriously behind schedule. It would have been inexcusable to have continued with the programme.” He made it clear that this does not mean an end to new buildings for schools, and an investigation is underway to identify those schools most in need of rebuilding, so that the funding can be prioritised for them.