Brealey was a former pupil there. He proposed a three-school system, arguing it offered more choice: the secondary modern would be consolidated at Westholme as a single-site 11–16 school; Carre's and the High School would also take 11–16-year-olds and operate Sixth Forms. Fairchild argued that this would be more popular and cheaper. After the Government ordered the Council to submit a comprehensive proposal in 1977, it voted to submit the three-school system, which had become popular with parents and was championed by Brealey, who had become chairman of the Governors at the Secondary Modern. But, the Labour Education Secretary, Shirley Williams, dismissed the proposals in 1978 on grounds that the Sixth Forms would be too small. The council then voted against the two-school system again. 1980–2011: Expansion In the 1979 general election, a Conservative government came to power and the Council shifted focus towards retaining Grammar Schools where they still existed and improving schools where work had been put on hold during the comprehensive debate; despite 90% of English councils adopting comprehensive education, Lincolnshire had resisted. In 1983, the three Sleaford schools launched a formal collaboration called the Sleaford Joint Sixth Form wherein pupils would remain officially based at one school, but could enroll on sixth form courses offered at any of the schools in the consortium. This was to enable the widest range of choice in courses. 2011–present: Academy conversion and takeover In March 2013, the Sleaford Target reported that the headteacher Craig Booker was proposing to introduce "an adjusted staffing structure which includes some new opportunities for staff whilst improving effectiveness, particularly across the support functions of the school". This was partly in anticipation of changes to the school's funding. In May 2013, the same newspaper reported that eight members of staff had been made redundant at the school; the trade union UNISON reported that "substantial changes" were being introduced to some other staff members' pay and working practices. Booker defended the decision saying that the school would "need to become as efficient as possible in their use of public funding". In 2014, the governors of Carre's Grammar School announced their intention to bid for conversion to a multi-Academy trust and became a coeducational, selective school on a new site; in February 2015, Kesteven and Sleaford High School announced its intention to join the proposed trust, a move welcomed by Carre's. On 1 September 2015, the school officially