Every private school that has signed up to become a state-funded academy was suffering declining pupil numbers or funding problems at the time it announced its decision, research by the Financial Times reveals.
The analysis suggests institutions that had struggled in the cut-throat competition of private school education have saved themselves from the rigours of the market by becoming servants of the state. Many more private schools may now seek to become academies because the economic downturn is likely to hit the number of parents who are able to pay fees.
