Source: Guardian >> Read full article and comment

From tackling social deprivation to providing a faith-based ethos, two free school pioneers describe their hopes for the government’s flagship education policy

Sajid Hussain and Gopinder Kaur Sagoo
Wednesday 8 September 2010

Parents have one opportunity to educate their child. It is a precious time, and every parent’s dream to send their child to an outstanding school. I come from a working class background, and my father sweated overtime as a bus driver to send me to an independent school because great teachers were not at the time able to set up a school in a socially deprived neighbourhood and deliver great educational outcomes. In my generation, parents who lived in socially deprived neighbourhoods often cried on the doorstep of their local authority for a good school for their child. I’ve been working in inner-city schools for the last 13-14 years, and children and parents have continued to face similar challenges. But now things look like they might start to change.….Continue Reading