The characteristics of different types of schools in relation to education stage(s) and school governance.
Community schools.
These are run by local authorities, which employ staff, owns the land and buildings and decides which admission criteria to use. Community schools look to develop strong links in the community sometimes by offering the use of their facilities and providing services like childcare and adult learning classes.
Foundation and Trust schools
These are run by their own governing body, which employs the staff and sets the admission criteria. The land and buildings are usually owned by a charitable trust.
A trust school is a type foundation school which forms a charitable trust with maybe a business or an educational charity.
Voluntary aided schools
These are mainly religious or faith schools. The governing body employs the staff and sets the administration criteria like a community school but the land and buildings are usually owned by a charitable foundation or religious foundation. The governing body helps towards the building and maintenance.
Specialist schools
These schools follow the national curriculum but usually focus on one aspect of interest like technology, arts or sport.
Academies
These are relatively new. They were ‘born’ on July 27th 2010.These are public funded independent schools, free from local authority and national government control. These schools set their own pay and conditions for staff. They can change the length of the school day and decide what to teach from the curriculum. Academies have to ensure that the school will be at the heart of its community, collaborating and sharing facilities and expertise with other schools and the wider community.