Opening a Free School

If you are working out how to open a free school, you are taking on one of the most ambitious things a trust, sponsor, or community group can do. It usually starts with a clear sense that children in an area deserve something better, or something different, than is currently available. Turning that conviction into an approved, funded, open school is a long journey with many stages, and it is understandable that founding teams can feel unsure where to start.

Our free school support walks alongside you from the first idea to the day the doors open. Below, we explain what the support involves, who it is for, and how it strengthens both your proposal and the school that follows.

What support do you need to open a free school?

Free school support is end-to-end advice for groups planning a new mainstream, special, or alternative provision free school in England. We help you test the idea, build the evidence of need, shape the education vision, get the governance and trust arrangements right, and prepare for each stage of the Department for Education (DfE) process, whether your route is a central wave or a local authority presumption competition.

Where you need the application itself written, we can do that too through our free school application bid writing service. Once a school is approved, we can stay with you through the pre-opening stage.

Who is free school support for?

It is designed for multi-academy trusts looking to grow through new provision, sponsors and proposer groups, faith and community organisations, and existing school leaders with a vision for a new school. It works especially well for trusts planning special or alternative provision free schools, where the evidence of need and the specialist model have to be very clear.

What does our free school support include?

We tailor the support to your stage and ambition, but the typical offer includes:

• Early feasibility work, including whether a free school is the right route for what you want to achieve
• Evidence of need and demand, including local data, parental and stakeholder engagement, and commissioner views
• Education vision, curriculum model, and the case for how the school will improve outcomes
• Trust capacity, governance structures, and leadership arrangements that assessors will scrutinise
• Financial planning and viability, including pupil number assumptions
• Site and premises considerations to raise with the DfE and local authority
• Preparation for assessment interviews, with practice sessions for your team
• Support through the pre-opening stage once approved

How does free school support help your proposal succeed?

How our free school support works

• We begin with a conversation about your vision, the area, and the children you want to serve.
• We carry out a short feasibility review and agree with you whether and how to proceed.
• We work with your team to build the evidence, the education model, and the governance and finance case.
• We review drafts, test them against what assessors look for, and prepare your team for interview.
• If approved, we agree the support you need through pre-opening and into the first year.

What you get at the end

Through the process, you receive:

• A clear, honest view of feasibility before you commit significant time and money
• A robust evidence base for need and demand
• A well-articulated education vision and curriculum model
• Governance, leadership, and finance arrangements that stand up to scrutiny
• A team that is confident and well prepared for assessment

Key features of our service

Senior education expertise
Our consultants have led schools and trusts and inspected provision across every phase, so the education case is built by people who know what good looks like.

Specialist in SEND and alternative provision
We work in special schools and AP every week, which makes a real difference when proposing specialist free schools.

From idea to opening
Feasibility, application, interview, and pre-opening support from one team that already knows your proposal.

Frequently asked questions about open a free school

Who can open a free school?

Free schools are academies, so in practice they are opened and run by academy trusts. Proposals can come from existing multi-academy trusts, or from sponsors, charities, faith and community groups who form or partner with a trust. What matters most is showing the need for the school and the capacity to run it well.

How long does it take to open a free school?

It usually takes several years from application to opening. After approval there is a pre-opening stage covering the funding agreement, site, recruitment and readiness checks, and finding and preparing a suitable site is often the longest part. Planning realistically from the start avoids disappointment later.

What types of free school can be opened?

Free schools can be mainstream primary or secondary schools, all-through schools, special schools, alternative provision, or 16 to 19 provision. Special and alternative provision free schools have become an important way of creating local specialist places, and they need a particularly clear model for the children they will serve.

What is the difference between a central wave and the presumption route?

In a central wave, the DfE invites applications nationally and assesses them itself. Under the presumption route, a local authority that needs a new school runs a competition and recommends a trust. We support both, including presumption competition bids.

What does the DfE look for in a free school proposal?

Assessors look for clear evidence of need and demand, a strong education vision and plan, a trust with the capacity and track record to deliver, sound governance, and a financially viable model. The strongest proposals tie all of these back to the children the school is for.

Why choose Jarvis Education to support your free school?

We started Jarvis Education to help schools become better schools for children, and a new school is the ultimate chance to get that right from the beginning. Our founder is a former His Majesty’s Inspector, and our network of associate consultants brings leadership, inspection, trust growth, and specialist SEND experience. We will give you honest advice, including when a proposal needs more work, because a strong application starts with a strong idea.

Next steps & how to get started

• Speak to one of our experts. Tell us about your vision and the children you want to serve, and we will talk through the route and what it will involve.
• Once we agree the scope, we confirm everything in writing and begin with feasibility.
• Contact us today to discuss free school support for your trust or proposer group.
• We are ready to support you in opening a school your community needs.