Failing Free School closed by DfE

[vindscreenviper]

Durham Free School has been told it will close as soon as all the pupils have found places at other schools. Its Ofsted report was only published this morning and although it's really bad I've never heard of a school being closed down on the same day. There must be other stuff happening in the backround surely, don't the DfE usually hand failing schools to one of their mates an academy chain to sort out?

There is also an allegation that one inspector who was not part of the main inspection team asked a female pupil inappropriate questions of a sexual nature in an unsafe situation.
Finally it is alleged that one inspector questioned a boy alone in a windowless room with the door shut - a serious breach of safeguarding protocols. The boy concerned alleges that he was asked personal questions about his sexuality and whether he had lost his virginity.

IMO those allegations are very serious and should have been made public, loudly and immediately they were brought to the schools attention. I take you point about the ad hominem attacks on their lawyers, although they do come across as the christian equivalent of ambulance-chasers

IMO those allegations are very serious and should have been made public, loudly and immediately they were brought to the schools attention

I agree those allegations are very serious. As someone who has some involvement in child protection I would expect the allegations to have been passed on to the appropriate authorities immediately they were brought to the school's attention. I would not expect them to make the allegations public in advance of any investigation as that could undermine the investigation.

By the way, I don't disagree with your take on the lawyers. I'm not sure I would have chosen them if I was involved.

Have you seen this copy of the lawyers letter prh? It does say that "Since the publication of the report the Trust has started to receive a number of reports which suggest that during the Ofsted inspection the Inspectors engaged in what the Governors would view as inappropriate questioning of students." So it seems that none of these serious complaints were raised until after the report was published, my eyebrow remains .
Here is a copy of the DFS school official complaint to Ofsted, saying pretty much the same thing.
Nice of The Spectator to actually publish the source documents, the article itself is a bit tin-foil hat though.

I have seen both of those documents. I am puzzled by that part of it. It does not sit well with Michael Wilshaw's comments to MPs. If the school did not know about these allegations until after 19th January there is no way Michael Wilshaw could justify a claim that Ofsted had spent a long time looking at them just 9 days later. I also feel it doesn't quite add up with some of the other comments made by the school around the lack of investigation by Ofsted. So something doesn't add up here. But, regardless of when they were made, these allegations must be properly investigated. That does not appear to have happened.

To address some of the things said about the school, it is a school based on traditional Christian values but I wouldn't describe it as evangelical.
The majority of parents whose children attend are not Christian.
I can't go into the ins and outs of timescales and what happened when just now but the school are taking all of the allegations made my children about Ofsted very seriously indeed.
I'm sure that you can understand my reticence to talk more freely at the moment.

As regards local students applying to the school, the school does not want to be permanently cited in its current location and this has meant that people locally are unwilling to send their kids with the possibility of the school moving out of the city into the villages to the south.

Not only do Michael Wilshaw's comments not add up but neither do a lot of Nicky Morgan's. She said she had had concerns about the school for a long time yet in June her own department gave the school a glowing report.
There is a lot wrong with all this, I just wish we could get to the bottom of it.

Michael Wilshaw doesn't seem to be taking the allegations very seriously though, in todays Independent he accuses the school of using them as a smokescreen. I don't think that he will back down now, and I doubt he will resign over this.
The local Conservative candidate visited your school and says that the children "are at risk of being treated as pawns in all this" and thinks the school should close without anymore fuss.
Have any of the children at the other two faith schools inspected at the same time complained about how they were questioned? If they have it hasn't been reported anywhere.

I thought they had for Grindon Hall, but the local papers seemed to be getting the stories of the two schools conflated, anyhow. This states that a formal complaint was made and the grindon hall parents twitter account isn't saying anything, but is encouraging parents to complain to ofsted.
www.sunderlandecho.com/news/north-east/pupils-questioned-about-sexuality-1-7049335

Sorry ouryve I should have been clearer, I was referring to Bede Academy and Emmanuel College. They were inspected at the same time as DFS and Grindon Hall, no mentions or complaints about inappropriate questions from either of them even though they were targeted for one of these 'British values' monitoring inspection too. I assumed the teams of inspectors would be following some kind of pre-agreed script and asking the same questions, I think the parents who are sending out tweets comparing the Ofsted Inspectors (whose full names are included on the reports) to 70's pop stars and hinting at paedophelia are doing their cause no favours at all.

Wasn't the school meant to be in Bowburn originally LS?

Yes, and it still wants to be mrz.

My child currently attends the Durham Free School but not for much longer. In addition to other pupils my child will be leaving today. I believe that the School will then have around 80 pupils- or less. It is worthwhile to note that the DFS funding agreement of 2013 (available online) states that if at September 2014 the number of pupils is below 110 funding by the DfE may be withdrawn forthwith. In fact the DFS appears to have been in breach of it's funding agreement since it's opening in respect of pupil numbers. Whatever the outcome of the appeals to Ofsted and DfE this appears to be reason enough to withdraw funding.

It seems that I was in the minority of parents when my reaction to the wholly damning Ofsted report was utter horror and anger at the catalogue of failure. I have since become equally horrified at the tenor of the campaign to save the DFS. The willingness of parents to use their children in the campaign is shocking. it is easy to find full names of children together with health conditions and learning difficulties. Some of these incidences are on the School's Facebook page and website. This information will follow the children as they grow- it will remain on the Internet for anyone to see.

As for the teaching staff- my child assures me that there are some very good teachers at DFS. In particular the History teacher praised in the Ofsted report. There are also some poor teachers- in particular the Science/Maths teacher criticised in the Report. He managed to send my child to sleep in a lesson (he never noticed). As for the things that he taught in Science- I consider some wholly inappropriate.

The retention of Aughton Ainsworth to act in the appeals and threatened judicial review by the DFS Trust concerns me greatly. As pointed out by a previous poster their choice of case involves quite a few high profile "Christian rights" cases. They have acted for The Christian Institute in such cases (an organisation founded by John Burn- a DFS governor). If the School does not want to be seen as being allied to Evangelical Christians why choose them? It would be interesting to see who is paying for such legal costs.

While some may satisfy themselves with laying the DFS's problems at the door of the former Head we must remember that it was the School governors who presided over his appointment and employment. The same governors who are now campaigning to save the school.

Thank you for sharing that condur, I hope your child settles into their new school quickly. If I were in your shoes I would be moving my DC too, rather than waiting on the outcome of the school's appeal. I wouldn't be surprised if the DfE quietly announce their decision to close the school during the holidays, to minimise the risk of more bad press and DM sadfaces.

Good luck to your DC at his/her new school

Thanks Vindscreenviper. Whenever the decision is announced I doubt whether the DFS will go quietly!

Well, you know the place better than me

Grindon Hall has children of staff at the top of their list of admission criteria, just behind looked after children and children with statements, so some parents will be ok when the inevitable happens at Durham.

I wonder why the solicitors are threatening judicial review? If they're alleging breach of the funding agreement, isn't it a breach of contract issue?

The DfE is following the process laid down in the funding agreement for withdrawing funding. The school's argument is that the Secretary of State has already made up her mind to close the school and therefore will not properly consider the school's arguments.

Judicial review is used where someone wants to challenge the way a public body (in this case the DfE) has made a decision. It does not look at the rights and wrongs of the decision itself, just whether or not it has been made in the right way.

If the Secretary of State has already made up her mind (as would appear to be the case from her public statements about this school) it is potentially a breach of process. Judicial review is therefore the correct approach for dealing with this.

A further consideration is that judicial review can reverse any decision to close the school if it finds that the correct process has not been followed, forcing the government to look at the case again (although they can still decide to close the school provided the correct process is followed). An action for breach of contract cannot reverse the decision. The most that would happen is that the academy trust would receive compensation due to the breach.

Ah yes Vindscreenviper I see what you mean. Fingers in a lot of pies.... Surely no coincidence.

Condur I am pleased that you have finally found a school for your child where you will be happy.

Just to reassure you, no public funds have been used to fund the campaign.

It is noticeable that you are the only family to be so vocal against the school and of the 14 children who will have moved a large proportion have expressed a wish to return should the school remain open. Added to which there are 8 families who have expressed a wish for their children to attend the school since all this started.

Once again I wish you and your family all the best as your child starts their new school.

LadySybilVimes, are you able to explain why it is that you and other parents have confidence in the governors of DFS, despite Ofsted's findings and despite the plain fact that they appointed Peter Cantley whose previous headship had been similarly shortlived?

How is the DfE or anybody else to be persuaded that these governors can be trusted to make good use of public money?

LadySybilVimes. There is always one!
Thanks for your good wishes. I hope that the many children at DFS can feel a little more settled soon- whatever the outcome.

Hopefully the contents of the DfE reply to your appeal will be made public shortly-once your lawyers have finished with it. I am pleased to hear that no public money has been used to fund the legal case. I notice that your lawyers?Aughton Ainsworth have done a lot of work on behalf of the Christian Institute in their various legal cases. As a matter of public interest I would like to know whether the Christian Institute is contributing to the DFS Trust's legal costs.

Granolamuncher, we have confidence in the governors because we see what a fabulous place the school is. We see our children blossoming and growing. We hear the children talking excitedly about what they have learnt that day.

Yes, a mistake was made in the appointment of the previous head. But the governing body had decided to dismiss him before all this kicked off.

Condur, the Christian Institute have not contributed to legal costs, and as far as I'm aware are not expected to do so.

LadySybilVimes Nothing is more important than a happy child. I couldn't quibble with what you say about your children's experience at the school.

The mistake that was made in the appointment of the previous head was an extremely serious one, though. It has caused a great deal of trouble and heartache, as well as a colossal waste of public money. The governors compounded their mistake by taking so long to rectify it. The Chairman of governors ought to have resigned but hasn't. To outsiders this looks like a recipe for disaster.

The campaign to save DFS is doing itself no favours by supporting this board of governors. The school deserves better.

The Durham Free School is to close at Easter. It looks like their lawyers are going to start a bunfight though judging by their Twitter feed.
m.durhamtimes.co.uk/news/11818164.UPDATED__Durham_Free_School_to_close_at_Easter__DfE_announces/?action=success#comments

I would love to know who those "wellwishers" are who have approached the DFS trust and offered help to pursue a Judicial Review.