DESPITE the government's u-turn on forced academies, it may still compel academy conversions on schools deemed to be struggling, according to the Liberal Democrats at Gloucestershire County Council.

The initiative to convert all schools to academies and remove parent governors from governing bodies was rejected by the Lib Dems at last week's county council meeting in Shire Hall.

A motion was made, asking the Council Leader to write to the Secretary of State for Education and the six Gloucestershire MPs to urge them to abandon their aspirations for the academisation of schools.

Twenty-eight council members voted in favour of the motion and it was carried successfully.

The motion suggested that despite the government abandoning its plans it will nevertheless still compel academy conversions on those schools that are deemed to be struggling or failing to improve sufficiently.

It motion said: "This Council recognises that there is a particular issue with the academisation of small rural schools, both in terms of the financial commitment involved and also the resource demands on the process on staff.

"This Council still continues to recognise the importance and the valuable contributions of parent governors and local authority governors who act as 'critical friends' to both support and hold head teachers to account.

"This Council believes that making schools become academies whether they’re struggling or not is both illiberal and undemocratic."

Former principal of Cirencester College, Councillor Nigel Robbins who proposed the motion said: “All twenty-four Conservative members abstained, which was to be expected, but I’m delighted that all the other parties gave the support needed to get this motion approved.

“In spite of the Government’s recent shift, which would have seen all state schools in England having to leave the oversight of local authorities by 2022, it is of great concern that schools will however still be pushed forward into becoming an academy.

“This is especially the case if it is seen that the local authority can no longer viably support its remaining schools because too many schools have become academies or where the local education authority consistently fails to meet a minimum performance threshold across its schools.

“I’m pleased the Leader will have to write to his party’s Secretary of State for Education asking her to totally abandon such highly illiberal and undemocratic conversions.”

Governor of two schools in Cheltenham, Cllr Iain Dobie, who spoke in support of last week’s motion, said: “I really think parents and teachers know what’s best for their school and should not be pressed to convert to academies if they don’t want to.

"Despite the U-turn the government’s vision for making all schools academies is still very much present.

“I am concerned that such schools would find academisation difficult not only financially, but also because it would put unreasonable demands on hard pressed head teachers and staff.

"There is also no guarantee that academy trusts would be interested in taking on small rural schools anyway.

“These preposterous plans should be completely abandoned.”