Next government could open up academies for Church

According to the chairman of the Catholic Education Service (CES), the Archbishop of Liverpool Malcolm McMahon, the faith admissions’ cap on new academies could be removed by the next government, writes Christopher Lamb.

At present, a new academy set up by the Church is only permitted to have 50 per cent of its intake as Catholic.

Archbishop McMahon told The Tablet that the cap is not enshrined in law but is part of the coalition agreement between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.

After the general election next May, he said, there would be “all to play for” in removing the cap, which could lead to an expansion in church-run academies: “There are areas where we desperately need Catholic secondary schools”.

The CES has consistently lobbied the Government on the matter, with Archbishop McMahon raising it directly with former Education Secretary Michal Gove. The cap does not apply to Catholic schools that convert to academy status. Academies are free from local authority control.