At a time of huge change in the education sector we in Beckenham are proud to boast some of the very finest schools in the country. From Hayes School, which was recently awarded ‘World Class School’ status, to Valley Primary School, one of the top performing schools in Bromley, parents are fortunate to have access to these sector leading organisations.
But excellence does not come easy. Due to a real and urgent demand to improve school performance, the Conservative Government has further developed the Academy schools agenda, first introduced under the previous Labour Government. The London Borough of Bromley and Beckenham schools have been in the vanguard of this change with the majority of our schools converting to Academy status. Indeed, so successful has Bromley been that we have engaged with central Government to share our learning and help others along the path to improvement.
Within this new landscape comes new challenges. So, despite retaining responsibility for a number of statutory roles such as special educational needs transport; the development, planning and funding of schools all move outside of Local Authority control and into the control of the teachers and the parents, those who know their children the best.
Whilst change can sometimes cause trepidation and uncertainty, our high performing schools demonstrate what can be done when parents, government and teachers all pull together to ensure that we are working towards the same goal; the best start in life for our children in Beckenham.
Councillor Peter Fortune