I HAVE been a long-standing opponent to schools moving out of local authority control to academy status.

However, it is only now that Fulford School proposes to move to a multi academy trust that the folly of such a changes becomes clear to me as a parent of a child attending the school.

Instead of the school having responsibility and accountability to its community stakeholders it will move to an independent organisation with five founding members who will appoint trustees.

Gone are the requirements for there to be governors at each of the schools in the trust. Gone are the requirements to follow national terms and conditions of employment. Gone is the requirement to follow the local authority admission policy. Gone has local accountability.

Parents have not been told how the five founding members will be appointed or the principles they will follow when setting policy, overseeing matters like admissions, curriculum and finance, and holding individual principals to account.

What we do know is that three out of the five members will be appointed by the Church of England or linked institutions. I do not have a problem with faith based schools. However Fulford School is not a Church of England school.

Don’t let Fulford School sleep walk into becoming an academy.

At the very least, I call upon the governors of Fulford School to hold a referendum on this proposal.

David Scott, Sandringham Street, York