8. How do academies differ from LA schools?

Academies have a lot more freedom in how they run themselves. They don’t have to follow the national curriculum and can set their own term times, teachers’ salaries and more. However, they still have to follow the same rules on admissions, special educational needs and exclusions as other state schools. They receive their funding directly from the government, rather than from the Local Authority, and therefore, have complete control over how they use it.