In the last issue of Socialist Resistance we described the threat that the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) poses for education. But there is a danger of focusing too exclusively on the future threat posed by GATS and neglecting the processes of privatisation already under way, which will continue whether agreement is reached on GATS or not. RICK HATCHER concludes this 2-part investigation. specialising in business and enterprise, in Middlesbrough, due to open later this year The sponsor is Sir Peter Vardy, owner of a chain of car dealers.
Vardy's motivation is the opportunity to inculcate his religious beliefs. He is a fundamentalist Christian who believes in creationism. The City Technology College he sponsors in Gateshead teaches creationism as a valid alternative to evolutionary theory. The head now appointed to the Middlesbrough city academy also has creationist views. Vardy has offered to sponsor 6 city academies
Garrard and Vardy won't make a profit from their Academies, but the legislation opens the door to future school-for-profit companies, and the government is also encouraging private schools to put in bids
The Labour government is also encouraging schools themselves to be entrepreneurial. The 2002 Education Act provides • • the legislation for schools to set up companies, following the example of Thomas Telford school in Shropshire which has made E3 million profit selling its courses online to other schools.
A new report from the Blairite Institute for Public Policy Research urges head teachers to market their management expertise to other schools - enabling some schools to make profits literally at the expense of others. What does an education-forprofit company look like?
Let me ask you a question. What have the following got in common: the Ballistic Missile Warning System at RAF Fylingdales
Yorkshire. the Atomic Weapons Establishment at Aldermaston, ScotRail, the Dockland Light Railway, the Manchester tram system; the Norfolk and Norwich hospital, Doncaster prison, and the LEAs in Bradford and Walsall?
The answer is that they are all run by SERCO. SERCO describes itself as a leading global outsourcing company, focusing primarily on the public sector'. It employs 34,000 staff in 36 countries. Its business is mainly military contracts with the British Ministry of Defence and other NATO countries. Now it has moved into education under the name SERCO QAA (Quality
In 2001 SERCO took over the manage. ment of two LEAs - Walsall and Bradford 'Walsall Education' is a 7 year contract worth £20 million. 120 centrally-employe LEA staff were transferred to SERCO 'Education Bradford' is a 10 year contract worth £360 million, involving the transfer of
SERCO is also a leading provider of national government grammes, including Headlamp and LPSH (the leadership programmes for intending and serving headteachers), the FastTrack rapid promotion programme for teachers and the Teacher Performance Management programme. In 2001-2 SERCO also carried out 250 Ofsted inspections.
The fact that a giant multinational with its base in managing defence contracts has decided to get involved in school education in Britain is a clear illustration that it has become a market offering significant profits, as well as a proving ground to develop the expertise and capacity to compete globally. Prospects for the education business industry
From the point of view of business, the