Brighton College, a successful independent school, is helping to establish a new sixth form college in Newham, under the government’s Free School programme, it was announced this week.

Last week at the conservative party conference, David Cameron challenged England’s successful fee-charging independent schools to help “tear down” the “apartheid” between England’s state and private sector.

“In Britain today,” Mr Cameron argued, “we have schools that are intolerant of failure, where 90% of pupils get five good GCSEs. Yes: private schools. I want to see private schools start Academies, and sponsor Academies in the state system.”

And it seems Brighton College, along with prestigious public school, Eton, Highgate School, and The City of London Boys School, is doing just that by helping to set-up The London Academy of Excellence (LAE) for disadvantaged young people in the London Borough of Newham.

The LAE has its roots in a partnership between Brighton College and Kingsford Community School in Newham that has been in place for the past four years. Each year, Brighton College offers 100% scholarships to two or three sixth-form students from Kingsford.

The London Academy of Excellence LAE will cater for 400 pupils over time and hopes to start with between 150 and 200 Year 12 pupils in September 2012.

The LAE will be established under the government’s Free Schools programme. Free Schools are funded by the government and are free from local authority control, they are able to set their own curriculum, choose how money is spent and decide on the length of the school day. 24 Free Schools have already opened in this academic year, including journalist and author, Toby Young’s new West London Free School. They are set-up by teachers, charities, universities, employers, and other groups in response to demand from local parents and industry.

The LAE group consider the Free Schools movement to be a great initiative. They see it as, “the beginnings of a brave new educational world, allowing schools to be freed from the shackles of LEA control. Independent schools have been doing this for a hundred years.”

“We would like this sort of sixth-form college to spring up in cities around the country.”

It has been reported that Eton College will be responsible for teaching English at the new sixth-form college, Highgate School for Mathematics and The City of London Boys School will be offering a member of staff to oversee the sporting aspects of the curriculum.