Swindon's Local Education Authority is preparing to strike out on its own as the sole director of the borough's schools.

Following a disastrous Ofsted report in 2001, which marked out Swindon LEA as one of the worst in the country, private consultants were brought in to sort things out.

For the past three years the LEA has been babysat by experts from Tribal Group.

But now council officials are developing a strategy which would see the LEA assume full control again when Tribal's contract expires in August next year.

Since Tribal's involvement with Swindon's schools began there have been positive signs that things are moving in the right direction.

In June 2003 a re-inspection by Ofsted awarded Swindon a satisfactory rating. Although the proportion of Swindon pupils who achieved grades A to C in five or more GCSEs last year, at 49.1 per cent, is lower than the national average of 52.9 per cent, it is still an improvement on 2001's figure of 44.5 per cent.

The LEA has agreed an ambitious target of pushing this up to 55 per cent by 2005.

The scheme is to be discussed at a meeting of the Education Partner-ship Board on Thursday.