For a second year running, the JC highlighted the anguish of parents with a child at a Jewish primary school in north-west London who struggled to find a place at a local Jewish secondary. The increasing competition for places prompted the year’s biggest story: the campaign for a new Jewish secondary school.
At one stage, no fewer than three grassroots groups had announced plans to bid for a free school. The establishment was unsure. Would there be sufficient demand for another school without the consequences of Jewish schools having to increase the intake of non-Jewish pupils?
The Chief Rabbi furthermore baulked at the idea of a free school because under existing rules it can guarantee only half its places on the basis of faith. But the government delivered him a gift on a plate by promising in the autumn to lift the entry cap on faith free schools.
By the time of the September deadline for applications, there were two free schools in the ring: Barkai College and Kavanah College.
