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ARTICLE · 05 OCTOBER 2026

New Statutory Guidance On Opening And Closing Schools

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New guidance issued on 1st September 2026 fundamentally changes how Local Authorities can establish new schools in England, removing the free school presumption and allowing LAs to propose maintained schools alongside academies. What implications does this shift hold for religious schools, LA-controlled trusts, and the future landscape of state education provision?

United KingdomConsumer Protection
Andrea Squires
Andrea Squires

On 1st September 2026, new guidance has been issued replacing previous guidance relating to the opening and closing of Local Authority (LA) maintained schools and the free school presumption which required all new schools proposed by LAs to be academies. The new guidance reflects changes introduced by the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026.

Although the legislative changes only affect opening new schools, new separate guidance has been issued for the opening of new schools and the closing of existing LA maintained schools. The new guidance can be found here:

Arrangements for open academies remain unchanged and any reorganisation will be treated as a “significant change”, applying the “Closure of an academy by mutual agreement” guidance.

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