School places shortage warning

Labour's shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg has said Michael Gove's decision to end primary school building has resulted in an expected shortage of primary school places.

"I've seen Michael Gove grand-standing today, suggesting somehow Labour can be blamed," he said.

"The root of this problem was the decision Michael Gove and David Cameron took in 2010, to end Labour's programme of primary school building," he added.

Education Secretary Michael Gove has said there is "definitely an issue" ensuring enough primary school places across the country, but that the government inherited a "terrible" situation from Labour.

"We have significantly increased the funding for primary schools. No-one is going without a school place this September," he said.

Parents could face a "desperate shortage" of primary school places within two years because councils wanting to open schools are facing "unnecessary restrictions", it has been claimed.

Almost half of the school districts in England will be over capacity by 2015-16 leaving parents scrambling for places that do not exist, the head of the Local Government Association told the BBC.

The warning comes as the Government announces 93 new free schools opening across the country, creating an extra 43,000 spaces for primary and secondary school children.

But the LGA is calling for the Department for Education to work more closely with local councils, so planning for emerging demand for places can be better managed.

Its analysis of local authority data suggests about 1,000 of the 2,277 local school planning districts will be over capacity by 2015-16, the BBC said.

The 93 free schools opening this month mark the largest annual boost in their number so far.

The schools are all over the country, from Camborne in Cornwall to Cramlington in Northumberland. See a map of the free school open to date here.

• 24 free schools opened in September 2011
• 55 free schools opened in September 2012
• A further two opened in January and April 2013
• 93 free schools are due to open this month
• 102 free schools have been approved to open in 2014 and beyond

(Department for Education, May 2013)

Some of the free schools opening this month provide the opportunity for students to specialise in particular subjects.

For example, the Judith Kerr Primary School in Southwark, south London, will teach pupils in both English and German.

It has the backing of children's author Judith Kerr, who moved to the UK from Nazi Germany, and is understood to be the first bilingual free school in the capital.

The Khalsa Science Academy in Leeds will specialise in the sciences while the Cathedral Primary School in Bristol is focusing on music and maths.

Natalie Evans, director of the New Schools Network, has said that the doubling of free schools is "great news for parents around the country".

Among the 93 free school opening this month is a specialist school for people with autism.

Thames Valley School, in Reading, Berkshire, has been launched by the National Autistic Society to offer opportunities to children with the condition.

It will cater for up to 50 pupils between the ages of four and 16, but will initially open with just 18 pupils building to full capacity over three years.

The charity, which already runs seven existing schools, plans to open two more free schools next year.

Almost 100 free schools will open their doors to pupils for the first time this month, bringing the overall number of open free schools to 174.

Of the 93 schools opening this month 35 are primaries, 42 are secondaries, 11 are all-age schools and five will cater for 16 to 19-year-olds.

Read: What is a Free School?