Flagship city academies in turmoil as two heads quit

MINISTERS face a mounting leadership crisis in academies after two heads quit flagship London schools in three months.

A national survey has shown more than a third of academies have lost heads since opening, with many leaving inside the first year. Critics warned sponsors were treating headteachers like "football managers" by putting them under excessive pressure to achieve instant results.

Fiona Cordeaux, a former private school head, resigned last month as principal of Walthamstow Academy. She had clashed with staff over her leadership style, despite improving grades.

Her resignation followed the departure of Phil Hearne, who quit Paddington Academy in December to take up another job after only 17 months in charge. Both were setbacks for England's biggest academy sponsor, Christian charity United Learning Trust, which runs the two schools, and Lambeth Academy, as part of a 15-strong national chain.

John Dunford, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said the high turnover was "a great concern", and sponsors too often had unrealistic expectations: "Sponsors are copying the worst excesses of football manager syndrome."

Government-funded research found 11 out of 27 academies polled across the country had seen a change in leadership, "often within the first 12 months of opening". The report, by PricewaterhouseCoopers, pointed to the "demanding nature of the task" faced by heads.

Set up under Tony Blair to transform education in the poorest areas, academies are semi-independent, state-funded schools sponsored by wealthy individuals, universities and church groups. At Walthamstow Academy, Mrs Cordeaux had been fighting staff allegations that there was a "blame culture" in the school. The National Union of Teachers threatened to strike before the row could be resolved. Alasdair Smith, national secretary of the Anti-Academies Alliance, said the ULT resignations raised questions over whether the sponsor was "fit for purpose". However, a spokesman for ULT said the resignations of the two heads were the only departures to have affected the group since July 2007.

The spokesman added: "It is unfortunate that the Anti-Academies Alliance continues to attack and oppose all academy sponsors when academies are achieving so much in often very challenging areas of the country."