Eight free schools to open in September – three of them religious

At least eight new free schools will open their doors this September – and three of them will be religious.

The Department for Education (DfE) named the eight schools which had signed funding agreements – promises of government funding in return for meeting certain conditions. Of these, three are in London, three in other urban areas and two in East Anglia.

The three religious schools are: St Luke’s C of E Primary School, Camden; Eden Primary School, a new Jewish school for Haringey; and the Sikh-ethos Nishkam Free School in Birmingham.

The others with agreements in place are: Bradford Science Academy; Stour Valley Community School in Suffolk; the Free School Norwich; and Batley Grammar School, a private school converting to the new status.

The DfE has received 323 applications to open new schools. In all, 26 schools have been approved to enter the “pre-opening stage”.

Others of these could yet open, however, with officials claiming that at least a dozen will open their doors this September.