New government-owned company to create 500 free schools
A new public property company is set to purchase and develop sites to help create 500 new free schools.
The firm, LocatED will acquire land and buildings across the country to assist the government in building the schools by 2020, and 600,000 new school places by 2021.
It is a government-owned company and will operate with a £2 million budget, making it one of the largest purchasers of land in the UK.
LocatED will act on behalf of the government to secure the right sites, at the right price, to ensure hundreds more free schools can open.
School Systems minister, Lord Nash, said: “We need to secure hundreds of new free schools in order to keep pace in creating 600,000 new school places by 2021.
“LocatED has the skills and expertise to find and secure land and buildings to ensure our free school's ambition becomes a reality.”
Nash added: “With 29 per cent of free schools inspected rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted - LocatED will play a vital role in helping us create thousands more good and outstanding school places for future generations of children.”
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