PROPOSALS have been unveiled to set up the borough's first ever 'Free School' run by parents independently of council control.

A group of 15 parents and teachers, led by educational consultant Hakan Gokce, want to open the 200 capacity primary school in Leytonstone by 2012 at the latest.

The bid, which has not yet been submitted to the Government for approval, lays out plans which include a school day that would be one-and-a-half hours longer than usual, with higher wages for staff and even home visits to pupils by teachers.

A location for the school, which has been provisionally titled the 'East London Free School', has not been settled on.

Mr Gokce, a 36-year-old former maths teacher, said the motivation behind the scheme is to help alleviate Waltham Forest's school places crisis while also encouraging investment into the borough.

He said: "Looking at the council's own projections, next year there will be a shortage of 414 places at reception level. In five years that could rise as high as more than 2,000. This is a major problem and we want to help.

"We believe this school will be beneficial for the whole community. It will be open to all and will not be selective. We will have longer teaching hours to raise attainment, and have a strong focus on English and literacy in the earlier years.”

Critics however remain unconvinced by the Free Schools scheme, established last year by the coalition Government.

National Union of Teachers (NUT) general secretary Christine Blower has said the schools will cause “chaos at local level” and lead to the increasing involvement of the private sector in education.

But Mr Gokce, of Antlers Hill in Chingford, said his group did not want to “get involved” in politics and saw the scheme as an opportunity to bring extra money into the borough from the Government.

He added: "We are not saying that the local authority is failing, but they do not have the flexibility and freedom that some parents want."

The proposed school's committee of teachers and other professionals including barristers and a financial analyst claims to have already attracted the support of 100 parents. They hope to attract at least 300 signatures to a supportive petition before formally submitting their proposals to the Department of Education for approval in February or March.

A public meeting to discuss the plans is being held by the group on Saturday January 22 at the Epicentre building in West Street, Leytonstone, at 1pm.

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