Academies and FOI
I can confirm Academies are not subject to FOI, I've received the following statement from DFES:
"In response to your question, Academies are not subject to the Freedom
of Information Act (FOIA). This is because the FOIA only applies to
public bodies, and Academies are independent schools (and also companies
limited by guarantee) and therefore not classed as public bodies."
It seems DCA may look at this when the consultation on further bodies to be added starts (date currently unknown)
With the planned expansion by the Government underway of Academies (200 planned by 2010) and public fears over accountability, surely swiftly bringing them under FoI is a way of assuring people over the their transparency?
Read more about how Academies are run
1 comment:
That is a somewhat disingenuous reply. There tens of thousand independent companies subject to FOI.
In the health sector alone GP surgeries, opticians and pharmacists are all independent companies, many of them limited companies.
They fall under the Act because they have been listed under schedule 1 of the Act.
Thus what the reply actually means is the government have decided that Academies should not be subjected to FOI. This is a political decision, not a legal one.
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