Academies and free schools

Introduction to academy schools

An academy is a school for pupils of compulsory school age (with or without the addition of a subsidiary nursery or sixth-form). Academies are state schools funded almost wholly through a funding agreement made between the sponsors or promoters of the academy and the Secretary of State for Education. In the academic year 2010–2011 there were just over 400 academies in England and now, by 2014, there are over 4000.

There are no academies in Wales. Although section 18(1) of the Academies Act 2010 (AcA 2010) does apply in Wales, the provisions for the creation and funding of new academies apply only in England.

Academies were founded originally under section 482 of the Education Act 1996 (EA 1996) and are now regulated by AcA 2010. Academies are technically defined as independent schools, but this independence is from their local authority, not from the state. Their funding comes from the Secretary of State and is regulated by a funding agreement negotiated with the Department for Education (DfE) or the Education Funding Agency (EFA) when the academy was founded.

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