Jason N. Parkinson: Video Journalist

Monday  26 March 2012: Alfie Meadows, a student who faced brain surgery after receiving a head injury during the December 2010 student protests, will face trial for violent disorder at Kingston crown court.

Footage available from reportdigital.co.uk at info@reportdigital.co.uk.

© Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

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Stills and print (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.
Video (c) Jason N. Parkinson/reportdigital.co.uk

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Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Film: Tent City Occupation

In September 2007 I was hired by the Wembley Park Observer to cover a local treetop protest. That started a documentary spanning three years and prised open the world of Academy schools and the slow move to private interests running the UK state education system.

Now, three years since I hit the record button, this film still stands as a warning of private interests in schooling, especially when they are so close to government, and local councils that stomp on the voice of the community.

Now the Labour Academy school program has been overtaken by the Con-Dem coaliion, had rocket booster’s strapped to the underside and ignited in the most aggressive attempt to privatise the last remaining public services in the UK, our children’s education.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive five-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com

>Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Video: Save Our Schools

As the new school year starts the Anti Academies Alliance has funded this short film that dissects the Con-Dem coalition education policy, the New Schools Network and Michael Gove‘s “rocket-booster” Academy school system.

(c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive five-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com

>
Stills, video, print (c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Wednesday 26 May 2010: On the day the Con-Dem coalition Academy Education Bill was passed I interviewed Alasdair Smith, the National Secretary for the Anti Academies Alliance.

Conservative Education Minister Michael Gove has put “rocket boosters” under Labour’s Academisation school program, as well as authorising the Free Schools policy. Both policies are perceived by all three major teaching unions as full-blown privatisation of the UK state education system.

2000 schools look set to gain Academy status, or “freedoms” as Gove has called it. Those freedoms, for one thing, allow private school sponsors to take control of staff wages and working conditions away from local authorities or national averages, meaning wages could go down as well as up and work hours could also increase.

In a roller coaster week for UK education policy, first Gove passed the bill that allowed all schools classed “outstanding” by Ofsted to apply for Academy status. This comes on top of existing Labour policy that forces failing schools to either close or become an Academy.

Three days later Gove passed a bill to make those very same “outstanding” schools about to become Academies exempt from Ofsted inspections, taking away scrutiny and accountability should those private education providers not succeed in their role.

This enhanced with current Freedom of Information exemption makes the private sponsors wholly unaccountable to the UK tax-payer, who will continue to pay for the privately-run schools.

Investigation will be left solely to whistleblowers, as has been seen in the two most recent bonus and expense scandals in the education system.

All material on this blog – stills, video and print
(c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive five-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com

>Stills, video, print (c) 2010 Jason N. Parkinson. All Rights Reserved.

YouTube: Crest Boys Academy Strike

Wednesday 21 April 2010: All three teaching unions, the NUT, ATL and NASUWT, united in the Crest Boys Academy Strike in Neasden, north-west London.

Academy sponsor E-ACT is forcing through redundancies at the school, claiming a lack of budget funds is causing the redundancies.

This claim came as E-ACT staff blew the whistle on director Bruce Liddington’s expenses, on top of his £265,000 annnual salary.

Coming some three years since the beginning of my coverage of the campaigns against the Academy school system, which culminated in the 30-minute documentary Tent City Occupation, this short film confirms many of the initial fears that led those campaigns. Academy school sponsors are considered private interests, despite being funded by the tax-payer, and are thus exempt from the Freedom of Information Act. This leaves all Academy sponsors devoid of public scrutiny and investigation.

Liddington, former schools commissioner for Labour and staunch pro-Academy advocate, replaced E-ACT director Lord Bhatia following a £70,000 hole in the funds of the then titled Edutrust.

E-ACT Director Bruce Liddington

All material on this blog – stills, video and print
(c) Jason N. Parkinson 2010. All Rights Reserved.

Please contact the AUTHOR for access to any material and the extensive five-year video archive.

jasonnparkinson@gmail.com