THE government’s plans to turn all local authority run schools into academies has been criticised by a Labour-run council.

Members of Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council heard the plans branded ‘Dickensian’ by Cllr Craig Hannaway, the executive member for children, who tabled the motion.

He raised concerns about the privatisation of education in the borough and the loss of local accountability.

In an impassioned plea at full council, he called on colleagues to get behind his motion to fight the government’s move to create academies across the country and keep ‘rapacious’ businesspeople out of the school system.

Cllr Hannaway’s motion read: “This Council views the Government announcement of enforced academisation as detrimental to education, local children and our communities and are extremely concerned that the spread of academy status to the point where local authorities like Redcar and Cleveland are undermined will be detrimental for our staff, children, governors, parents and communities.

“Instead of a huge and costly top down reorganisation the government should be looking at ways to support our immensely hardworking head teachers and the thousands of dedicated teachers and support staff who do so much to provide excellent education for young people often in difficult circumstances.”

It concluded: “This council is against enforced privatisation and will support local communities, teacher’s organisations and the Borough's MP's in opposing these proposals by the Government.”

An amendment to delete the MPs from the motion was unsuccessful following a vote.

Cllr Glyn Nightingale, Liberal Democrat, supported the campaign to block academies, he said: “I’m not against academies as such, but I think it should be a decision for individual schools and local communities.”

Supporting the motion, Independent councillor Steve Kay said the Labour party shouldn’t ‘pat itself’ on the back too much as it was the Labour party that gave birth to this idea and it is the Conservatives who has run with it.

UKIP member Cllr Steve Kay said: “The academy system is something I don’t believe in. I have seen it work in some cases and seen it fail in some cases. Like most members, I’m a school governor at a state run school and it doesn’t need to be turned into an academy to succeed.”

Conservative group leader, Cllr Valerie Halton said she as appalled as other members when the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, outlined plans to force all schools into becoming academies.

She said when the then Labour Prime Minister ‘Tory’ (Tony) Blair launched academies he did so to help parents and governors get schools out of the hands of failing local authorities.

The motion was passed with 45 votes in support.