5Power to form company to establish Academy, etc
(1)The governing body of a maintained school in England may—
(a)form, or participate in forming, a company to enter into an agreement under section 482 of EA 1996 (agreement with Secretary of State to establish etc an Academy), and
(b)do anything which appears to them to be necessary or expedient in connection with a proposal that an agreement under that section be entered into with a company formed (or proposed to be formed) by them under paragraph (a).
References in this subsection to a company are to a company registered under the Companies Act 2006 as a company limited by guarantee.
(2)The governing body of a maintained school in England—
(a)may be a member of a company which they have formed, or participated in forming, under subsection (1)(a), and
(b)may be a member of a company which is not within paragraph (a) but which is party to an agreement under section 482 of EA 1996.
(3)The power conferred by subsection (1)(b) includes, in particular, power—
(a)to incur expenditure;
(b)to enter into arrangements or agreements with any person.
(4)This section is not to be read as limiting any powers that the governing body of a maintained school have otherwise than by virtue of this section.
(5)In this section “maintained school” means a community, foundation or voluntary school or a community or foundation special school.