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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to be horrified by my kids' school's latest Ofsted and want to shift them asap?

78 replies

bundybear · 14/02/2017 13:30

So, we received the latest Ofsted report for my kids' primary school yesterday. Previously 'good' school, ticking along nicely, lost the head last year and not managed to recruit another so we've had an Executive Head drafted in since Sept. The school has been put in Special Measures, and the report is, shall we say, challenging. There's basically nothing good to be said in any section apart from safeguarding Hmm.

We already had a few concerns about a dip in standards after the last head left - bit less discipline, bit of a lack of direction - but not to the extent highlighted in the report. We thought it would be quickish to turn around with the Exec Head.

We moved a year or so ago (only a mile) but didn't shift the kids as we were happy with the school at the time, but now I'm thinking of putting in an in-year application to transfer. Two schools close to us - one is tiny (intake of 15) but within catchment, the other is bigger, but didn't give places to anyone beyond 0.5 miles (we're 0.8 miles away). Both are full so we'd be on a waiting list.

Thoughts about being in a Special Measures school? Remotely likely to get a transfer?

My kids are in Y4 and Y2, and we're applying for DD3's place in January (more dilemmas).

OP posts:
Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 17:06

Thanks everyone, much food for thought. I've handed in the paperwork for transfer but I'm realistic about the chances of gaining two places any time soon so my two will carry on where they are for now. Next dilemma will be where to put down for DD3 who is 3 in May.

I would never base my decision on Ofsted purely, but neither would I dismiss it, especially given some of the serious concerns raised. I've had an email from the Head Governor who has said that there was in fact some positive feedback about the exec head and that very new procedures looked to be on the right track. What we need more than anything is a good, permanent Head. The recruitment process had seemed to have stalled but I guess it will pick up apace now.

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FrayedHem · 14/02/2017 17:15

My DC school's last Ofsted report was awful. They weren't even doing DBS or pre-employment checks on new staff and it got worse than that! So I don't fall in to the ignore Ofsted camp. Interestingly, despite rating everything else as 4, management got a 3 so it was rated as Inadequate- Serious Weaknesses rather than Special Measures.

A meeting was arranged by the Academy Trust to discuss what they were doing - is anything like that planned for your DC school?

If I had another workable option I'd definitely explore it. A lot of the teaching staff at my DC school moved on rather suddenly and there was a run of supply teaching in 3 of the years for a while.

Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 17:25

There is a parent meeting with the senior leadership and governors tomorrow evening but I can't go as DH is away and I have no childcare (kids not allowed).

We can send in questions though - is there anything key I could ask?

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Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 17:27

P the school is not an academy yet and that's not been mentioned - yet. It's a CofE school, not sure if that makes a difference?

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SmileEachDay · 14/02/2017 17:33

If the school has been put into SM then whatever problems there are haven't just appeared overnight - you are just aware of them now. TBH there isn't much in the way of additional funding these days, but schools in SM do get increased monitoring and underperforming staff and leadership tend to be dealt with.
Essentially, the situation should be an improving one OP - it's the years just before SM that tend to be a bit shit, and your children have managed to make progress despite this.

DesolateWaist · 14/02/2017 17:34

I haven't heard of any schools recently near me that haven't ended up in Special Measures. I don't know what that's about!

Anyone would think that there was some kind of conspiracy to get all the schools into special measures and then turned into academies there by privatising all the schools.

Why the living fuck parents aren't all screaming from the roof tops about this I don't know. Teachers have tried but get called whiners.

DesolateWaist · 14/02/2017 17:37

P the school is not an academy yet and that's not been mentioned - yet. It's a CofE school, not sure if that makes a difference?

The CofE has it's own academy chain so very little should change.

Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 17:39

That's helpful SmileEachDay, hadn't thought of it that way. My two have been doing ok, exceeding in everything and generally enjoying things. I do think discipline has gone downhill rapidly since the last head left - obvious things like no teachers patrolling the playground in the morning, no dealing with bad language etc, and that was highlighted in the report.

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Rickandmorty · 14/02/2017 17:39

Indeed desolatewaist!

MrsT2007 · 14/02/2017 17:48

Had exactly this. Different circumstances but awful head left (leaving power vacuum) after awful ofsted which slated leadership. Was a LA school. Small DS was happy and his class teachers were fab. Teaching was praised and given higher grade than leadership, but overall was deemed failing due to the head.

Now an academy in small chain. New head, seems to be going from strength to strength and I'd say would get a good ofsted now.

SomewhatIdiosyncratic · 14/02/2017 17:48

Half my city is in special measures. I've known several decent schools go from "outstanding" or long term "good" end up in special measures, usually down to a more recent change in criteria and the ability to demonstrate practice on paper. One of the most recent was largely due to a public footpath through the site which apparently compromises their safeguarding judgement, when there has never been an incident. Last time OFSTED came in, it wasn't on their agenda. That's quite different to other long term low perfoming schools that have ongoing issues with their catchment and reputation.

I've worked in many schools across a range of OFSTED judgements, and there's not be much correlation between the judgement and the reality of the experience of being a pupil/ teacher in that school.

FrayedHem · 14/02/2017 18:51

The school have to put together an improvement plan, they don't have to share the entire thing as some information will be confidential, but they can make relevant parts available to parents. So I would be asking for that and finding out who will issue it and how (by request/school website etc).

Apart from that, just ask the questions relevant to your situation - how is the class behaviour going to be managed, will you get more regular progress updates on your child, will there be further meetings to discuss school progress.

My DC school is CoE and the Trust is some kind of diocese. Ours converted after a SM judgement, on first inspection after conversion got RI, then the latest was Inadequate- Serious Weaknesses. Not what you would call a roaring success!

tovelitime · 14/02/2017 19:03

I would get them out asap. I have had kids in a school which is in SM. What happens is that everyone panics and they bring in a whizzy head teacher who sorts everything out for Ofsted and the boxes get ticked. They then move the whizzy head teacher on to another school to sort out and everything falters a bit. Meanwhile, the motivation in the school is low, the good teachers leave because they can get easier jobs, the rubbish teachers stay because they can't get a job anywhere else and NQT's and overseas teachers join because there aren't many experienced teachers who want a school in SM when they can get jobs elsewhere. I don't worry particularly about schools which are Ofsted outstanding or good or even requiring improvement if I can read between the lines but they don't put a school in SM for no reason, they can get an inadequate but avoid SM before SM comes in. They'll probably paper over the cracks quite quickly but the soul of the school will take much longer to come back.

I knew our school was failing about 18 months before the inspectors did and I kept my kids there thinking it couldn't be that bad. It was only when they moved that I realised the extent of the gaps in their knowledge. Other people kept their kids there, the school now has a Good rating but it's not good, except on paper, there are still serious and fundamental issues within the school and the staff aren't happy. The whizzy head has moved on as mentioned above and someone new has been put in who will stay for another year until they get moved on and nobody good wants to take the job on for a permanent basis.

YippieKayakOtherBuckets · 14/02/2017 19:05

NQT's and overseas teachers join because there aren't many experienced teachers who want a school in SM when they can get jobs elsewhere

Schools in SM are not usually allowed to recruit NQTs.

tovelitime · 14/02/2017 19:16

Schools in SM are not usually allowed to recruit NQTs.

Then they were extremely young inexperienced teachers and also many were agency staff. They were not experienced teachers at all. Some of the overseas teachers had visa issues and disappeared almost as quickly as they arrived

tiredofhavingtothinkofnewnames · 14/02/2017 19:46

If management is judged as not great then even if the teaching they saw was outstanding they are not allowed to give this grade, because they way OFSTED works is that nothing can be graded higher than the leadership grade.

That isn't actually true. It is unusual but it can happen and indeed has on at least 1 occasion this academic year.

Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 19:46

Hmmm... so hard to know how it will pan out. I guess there's not much more we can do, I've submitted the transfer paperwork so now we have no choice but to sit and wait for a place for each child and keep everything crossed that things improve where they are.

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tiredofhavingtothinkofnewnames · 14/02/2017 19:52

Schools in SM are not usually allowed to recruit NQTs.

It isn't that simple. Academies and free schools can. Maintained schools can if HMI says they can. The definition of an NQT is not rigid- there are lots of new Uk teachers who donates start a formal NQT year and so are not NqTS (including those who work through agencies). An agency teacher is not an employee etc etc .

MaisyPops · 14/02/2017 19:53

No school has a bad day and ends up in special measures.
BUT, with a special measures school there can be great teachers. Me ans a few colleagues were graded good in an ofsted that ended in special measures. To get special measures it means that ofsted have concerns that school leadership dont currentlh have the ability to improve the school in a reasonable time frame.

The new management, lots of quick fixes and endless initiatives meant that lots of the 'stronger' staff moved on to new posts in different schools.

I'd be looking at moving to a new school for your children.

Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 20:04

Yes it was very much a message about leadership - no permanent head despite 2 attempts at recruitment, an executive head who is only in 2 days per week and a rubbish head of school. Probably inevitable in some ways.

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MaisyPops · 14/02/2017 20:09

From that alone I can see why they got pulled down.
Even a team of exceptional teachers are limited if there's nobody captaining the ship. They can do brilliantly for their individual classes but nobody is steering the ship and setting the agenda.

Original poster
bundybear · 14/02/2017 20:13

Yes there's been a distinct lack of steer that's for sure. The last head was very strong but she left at short notice (family illness) so there wasn't even a decent handover.

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2017willbeawesome · 14/02/2017 20:15

I have real issues with ofsted (10 years of tearing my hair out with them). Part of the issues recently with early years and Foundation Stages is that they have changed the criteria - lots of good schools have fallen foul of this, & some shocking schools who pay for consultants (and then plead poverty to the parents - they ran out of paper) squeak through as they have been seriously prepped. Go on what you see, how you view your DCs are doing at the school. Ofsted reports are not worth the paper they are written on.

tiredofhavingtothinkofnewnames · 14/02/2017 20:20

As soon as the report is published the school will receive the academy order.

The diocese should be at the parents meeting and leading it. They will be able to tell you what the academy trust options are.

FarAwayHills · 14/02/2017 20:25

From experience of my DCs school and based on your DCs ages I would move them if I could. The transition period between heads can be incredibly disruptive. We had a series of acting and temporary heads that led to the school floundering. Also the implementing changes and improvements will take time along with a likely staff changes.