MADAM - Families thinking of signing up for the proposed Steiner free school in Stroud may be interested to learn that there is a court case pending between the information Commissioner’s Office and the Department for Education over exactly how Steiner schools were approved for state funding.
Eighteen months ago the British Humanist Association asked under the FOI act for the documents written by the government’s free schools team on this issue to be made public.
The BHA says it has reason to believe that Michael Gove overrode the team’s findings on the matter, and recommended Steiner schools should be admitted to the Free Schools project.
The government has refused to make the documents public despite the ICO’s decision that it should, and the latest reason given is that it may “damage Steiner schools’ commercial interests”.
Many people would like to know why the commercial interests of Steiner schools are considered more important than the right of parents to know what the government’s team thought of Steiner education.
More at http://bit.ly/1gpGDW0 and stopsteinerinstroud.com
H Saunders
Bowbridge
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