Free Schools and Entry to England's Post-2010 Field of School Supply

• In Event: The Politics and Policy of Achievement, Reform, and Choice

Abstract

This paper summarises PhD research which focused on the way England’s post-2010 free schools provide a site which can be used to explore school-supply as what Bourdieu would describe as a field. Within this arena, a bounded social space, individuals and groups compete for capital. Opening a free school required proposers to submit an application, which was assessed by government. The rules used to control entry to the field provide insight into how the game was ‘played’, who could be considered a suitable player, some of the reasons why policy-text description of free schools did not match the experiences of individuals involved and why innovation was never likely to be seen as desirable.

Author

• David Bray, University of Birmingham
  Presenting Author