Managing Grant Maintained Primary Schools

monopoly of maintained schooling’.. The grant maintained {GM) programme was directed largely at the secondary sector. The ERA allowed all secondary schools to apply for GM status but only large primary schools, ivith more than 300 pupils, ivere eligible. Significantly, however, the legislation gave the Secretary of State power to modify or abolish this provision. The restriction was lifted by John McGregor at the 1990 Conservative Party conference, despite uncertainties about the vability of small GM schools (Fitz and Halpin,1991 ) . Opting out has attracted much more interest