The Anti Academies Alliance is deeply saddened to hear of the death of Ken Purchase. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-37213144

Our condolences go to his wife Brenda and the rest of his family. Our movement has lost a principled and courageous fighter for justice and equality.

Stand up for our children! No more exam factories. Let’s make 2016 the last year of useless tests. Our schools should be places for children to be excited by curiosity and learning. Instead, learning is getting shrunk down to yes/no answers to fit what the tests require. Teaching to the test should have no place in a 21st century education system. I pledge to stand together with other parents and staff to take whatever appropriate action is necessary to stop SATS and other useless tests in 2017

Nicky Morgan’s retreat on total academisation by 2022 is a humiliation. Like Gove before her, she now has to face reality: right wing ideology does not make good education policy. All the rhetoric about choice, markets and autonomy are really just hot air. The market cannot be trusted to deliver high quality education for all.

Following the brilliant meeting of 200 parents at the Parents Defending Education event a number of other rallies have been organised. There will be PaDE meeting in Liverpool on Monday 9th May. This is followed by a meeting in Manchester on 14 May. There are also a number of local meetings being called such as the Stoke Newington event on Wednesday 27 April.