IN Tom Jennings’ piece on West Oxfordshire’s new academies (March 10), county council cabinet member for schools, Melinda Tilley, is quoted as saying: “I am passionate about school attainment and according to (Education Secretary) Michael Gove, academies improve twice as fast as other schools.”

Really? The Department for Education’s own figures would seem to contradict Michael Gove’s claim.

The Department’s analysis of 2010-11 GCSE results show that 57.8 per cent of (non-academy) comprehensive pupils achieved five+ GCSEs or equivalent at A* – C (including English and maths), set against 50.1 per cent for academy pupils, with sponsor-led academies coming in at 46.8 per cent.

Too few primaries have so far become academies for any performance data to be effectively analysed.

But the world according to Mr Gove in terms of secondary academies does not appear measured by results.

The fact that the county council cabinet adopted on February 14 a report which pronounces “the council’s support for the conversion of schools to academies” certainly follows what Gove wants, ie, that all existing schools should become academies.

For the sake of the future of education in Oxfordshire, for parents, children, and staff, this shouldn’t be what Michael Gove gets!

BRUCE ROSS-SMITH Bowness Avenue Headington Oxford