Report this comment
  • "We all face difficult decisions every day do we not? I am not quite sure why you are directing your comments and wrath towards me?

    As I see it, if the academy schools had the reputation of say, Orleans Park we would probably not be having the whole Catholic school debate. I for one would not worry about a 30-40 minute journey if at the end of it was a great school.

    We should be concentrating our efforts and getting to grips with why the recenet Ofsted inspection was still pretty poor for TA.

    The Catholic school thing is a red herring (unless you are against faith schools in principle, and I can understand why some people are).

    Currently, my Y4 child will only really have TA to choose from - hence my feeling that many, on the Twickenham side are being disingenuous themselves to try and dress this up as purely a numbers game. They seem to just want to do anything to avoid having to join us at TA, RPA or HA. I am really pleased that NFS4T will wait until 2014 to (hopefully) open as it gives the Academies a better chance of success.

    The Govt seems to agree with that."
  • This field is mandatory
  • This field is mandatory

  • Please note we will not accept reports with HTML tags or URLs in them.


  • Enter the above word in the box below

Please be fair, courteous and respectful to the views of others so we can build a vibrant community in a safe online environment. You are personal liable for your comments and action will be taken against anyone who offends, ridicules or posts malicious and damaging views. If you wish to complain, please contact us.

Maharishi Free School loses bid to open in Richmond

5:24pm Friday 13th July 2012 in Richmond By Paul Teed

A Maharishi school trust has failed in its bid to open a new free school in Hampton.

The Maharishi Free School Richmond team lost out to St Mary’s Church, in Church Street, Hampton, which submitted a competing application to the Department for Education (DfE) for a primary school on the same site, in Oldfield Road. The Thomson House School, which applied to open in Barnes, Mortlake or East Sheen, was also among the 102 new free schools across the country that the DfE approved today.

Its proposal was for a primary school providing places for 336 children.

The Maharishi Free School Richmond team’s failed bid raises questions over Richmond Council’s long-term plan to overcome a lack of secondary school places in the borough.

The school, which would have taught pupils aged four to 18, was due to open in September next year. It proposed teaching children transcendental meditation, a technique based on the teachings of guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, as part of its curriculum.

Richard Scott, of the Maharishi Free School Richmond team, said: “On behalf of the Maharishi School team I would like to thank all the parents in Richmond who have been so supportive of our application. In fact I have always felt that these parents have been a critical part of our team.

“Today the DfE has published the list of approved free schools and I am sorry to say that Maharishi School was not on it. They have raised some points that they have asked us to work through with them before re-applying next year.

“This is certainly disappointing after all the hard work, but there is nothing that we cannot address while keeping the special quality of the Maharishi School; it does mean that we will not be in a position to open a Maharishi School in Richmond in 2013.”

Mr Scott said he had no doubt the school’s educational methods worked.

He said parents of children at a Maharishi free school in Lancashire had all said in a survey that they were happy with it. He added: “Our biggest concern is for the parents who will be disappointed by this decision and the children who would have been our pupils. I sincerely hope that they find a school for them that helps them to develop their full potential.”

Local Businesses

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree