The Sutton Trust have been tracking the progress and effectiveness of Academy chains since the inception of the Academy programme in 2000. Chain Effects 2015 is the latest updated report, superceding Chain effects 2014, which looks at questions of effectiveness and service to disadvantaged pupils.
The 2015 report tells a patchy story of delivery, and how Ofsted inspection grades actually mark a level of achievement that falls below excellent in many cases.
The report notes that, in an analysis of all secondary schools and sponsored academies, the academies achieve lower inspection grades generally. As educational entitites they are twice as likely to fall below the ‘floor standard’.
The findings across the two reports (2014 and 2015) also make noteable the contrast between ‘the best and the worst’.
It is clear that there are exceptional achievements, where schools with high attainment levels for their disadvantaged pupils have improved faster than the average, in terms of supporting disadvantaged children. However, those chains who did less well, achieved significantly worse outcomes that comparable schools, using baseline data for 2012 as a starting point for the analysis.
Where data has been captiured for pupils with low prior attainment, it is true that academy chains have been successful in ‘…significantly improving the attainment of this group, an important demonstration of value’.
Using a ‘range of government indicators‘ for attainment, it is clear that most academy chains still underperform their mainstream average ‘competitors’ in supporting disadvantaged pupils.
The report makes six main recommendations for improvement to inspection, process and delivery. They are…
- The DfE should expand its pool of school improvement providers beyond academy sponsors, including developing new school-led trusts and federations…
- New chains should not be allowed to expand until they have a track record of success in bringing about improvement…
- Ofsted has had its ability to inspect chains extended but these fall short of the formal powers they enjoy over academies individually and other education providers. Ofsted should be empowered to undertake formal inspections of academy chains…
- Agreements for new sponsors should be shortened to five years from seven. Renewal of funding agreements should only be granted where improvement has been demonstrated…
- The DfE should include a measure of progress for disadvantaged pupils in their definition of coasting schools…applicable to all schools…
- Sponsor chains, with a demostrable need to improve, should seek out successful practice and reflect on what their own chain could learn from this experience…
Source: The Sutton Trust http://www.suttontrust.com/researcharchive/chain-effects-2015/ Accessed: 10.07.2016
In order to map progress across the broader educational landscape you can find the detail of Chain Effects 2014 here.
