Steiner Academy Frome crazy or creative?!

[TiredMummy3000]

My husband and I are planning to move to Frome this year specifically to enroll our two girls in the Steiner Academy there. My husband went to the Steiner school in Hereford in the first few years of it opening, so we have a good understanding of what Steiner education can entail.

What i'm looking for is some opinion specific to the Frome school. My husband had a positive experience in Hereford, based on the caring and nurturing principles in place there and this what we are seeking. There was very little anthposophy and not too much of what i personally think of as the "crazy stuff". I've read plenty of things on here that make my blood curdle... gnomes, imperfect souls, reincarnation etc. But when i ask my husband about that he has no clue what i'm on about, it played no part in his education at Hereford.

Are there any parents or teachers or otherwise in the Mumsnet community that can give me some idea whereabouts on this scale the Frome Academy sits?

No disrespect intended but please no general Steiner bashing. I'm aware it can be a divisive subject, but i'm looking for comments from those with real life experience of Frome Steiner school - especially from present an previous parents

I think you may just prove the point... if you want educational by gnomes - go to a school where the parents openly support belief in gnomes!

To claim the religion doesnt influence schooling is crackers when quite clearly the gnomes etc are all there through and through!

sites.google.com/site/waldorfwatch/gnomes

In particular the last few paragraphs where it talks about getting parenta to fall in love with the gnomes...

Finance- yes, usually a struggle at Steiner schools.
Safeguarding- yes, just an old fashioned attitude that children should stay where they are put, should know better than to set themselves on fire etc.

Some teachers have a very controlling 'my classroom is my kingdom, my school is my empire', don't criticise, we don't do it like that here approach.

@JustKeepSwimming oh I totally missed that re gnomes... at our school they’re not that prevalent at all! There’s nothing “crazy” and they take safeguarding extremely seriously.

Tiredmummy I wasn't referring to the Ofsted inspections as a result of the Exeter closure.

Aside from that there is a wealth of documentation that has been sent to Ofsted by parents of current students, parents of former students and the parents of students who are still on roll and would like them to go back but only when they are sure that the safeguarding of their children is adequate.

If you do send your own DCs to the school I genuinely hope that they are safe and well cared for.

So, i think despite my best efforts this has all become a sadly familiar exercise in Steiner bashing.

If anyone who knows SPECIFICS ABOUT THE FROME SCHOOL good or bad wants to keep posting (and thanks for those above who already have) please feel free. Anyone who has no knowledge of the Frome school and just wants to express their opinion of Steiner schools in general, tell horror stories they've heard second hand, or pass judgement on my consideration of sending my children there, please don't post.

This does need to be confirmed, by I have been told that after the recent Ofsted inspection, the Principal is now on long term sick leave, an emergency replacement found and the School has been placed on special measures. We need the publication of the report to confirm what is going on.

I'm not sure your comment is very fair tiredmummy. people who know the school did comment. I haunt these boards and it would not be that usual to get numerous comments on a niche primary school in a specific town. I am not sure what you were expecting? When we were interested in a grammar school in the north of England I contacted the head of the PA (named on their website) who provided some feedback. Given what is going on at the school now I would not propose that route but maybe you could try local Facebook groups for the town? The admins of those may have suggestions for you if the school is not currently being discussed.

Lecanardnoir123 oh wow, that is worrying! The 2014 Ofsted report was absolutely glowing, how have things gone wrong so quickly? Can I ask if you have that info direct from the school? And how long ago was the inspection? I read that they publish the results within three weeks... better hurry up we've just had an offer on our house!!

Ovienna thank you for the advice I'm new to posting here so wasn't sure how local the response would be. I'll take your advice and check the local FB pages

Tired,

Ofsted inspections are usually turned round pretty quickly - 3 weeks would be about right. However, the Ofsted site says that, for example, if a school is judged inadequate, it can take up to 28 working days (nearly 6 working weeks) to publish - and obviously the Chistmas holidays will put quite a long delay in the middle of that period. So if inspected in December and judged inadequate, the report could end up being published after nearly 8 weeks.

Nightmare! I can't wait that long! I'll have to give the school a ring tomorrow and see what they can tell me. Absolutely typical that everything happens at once!

Dryborough i see now that you were right about the inspection and I'd got my wires crossed. Apologies! Thank you for the info from your friends experiences. 😊

Note that the school CANNOT (is not allowed to) tell you the result of the Ofsted inspection until it is published.

So you can ask them about the head, and about the date on which they were inspected (which will give you a latest expected publication date) BUT they can give you no information about the result at this point.

(Senior staff / governors do know on the day, and tbh the information does tend to leak out in the community, especially if it is dramatic news. But ringing the school won't give you a definitive answer at this stage)

Head in hands 🤦🏻‍♀️

@TiredMummy3000 Steiner inspections have a habit of being conducted with 'Steiner Goggles' on. Some are not even inspected by Ofsted but by the School Inspection Service which was lobbied for by Steiner Schools to inspect 'schools of a special nature'. Ofsted have recently had to take a first hand role due to the number of issues arising.

Regardless of the inspection, you need to understand that Steiner Schools are Anthroposophical Schools. Everything is done in them for an Anthroposophical reason. Many/most parents/pupils will not be aware of the significance of what is done because Anthroposophy is an initiated, esoteric new religious movement. You will not be initiated unless they trust you - most are kept in the dark about the anthroposphical aims of the school. Dismissing concerns that 'problems are due to a few bad apples' is to fall into the trap that so many parents do. Lack of safeguarding is not a bug but a feature - karma is the guidance, not stuffy 'un-creative' procedures and rules. The teachers are all part of a small and tight community. The 'off sick' principal has done the rounds. The problems in Exeter etc will be shared at Frome.

If actually heard great things about the head, Trevor Mepham. He used to lead the Hereford school and the kids there loved him. I'm not sure what the story is, but I was under the impression he was already off sick prior to this?
Looks like the car inspection was about seven weeks ago, so the report must be due out soon! 🤞🏼

Car?! Don't know where that came from!

Kids loving a head does not always mean that the head is good, however - and while you are right to want comments specifically about the Frome school, given the known Steiner positions on bullying and SEN (based on the belief system that underpins the difference of all these schools, a bedrock of the movement) and known safeguarding issues throughout the movement's schools, in your position I would want to be looking for concrete evidence and examples of how Frome as an individual school has positively and publicly fought against and shed these known issues, rather than assuming they aren't there unless they have been directly pointed out.

NC for this as it's so controversial, but the recent OFSTED was an emergency inspection triggered by formal complaints about the way they have dealt with SEN in the school, and also that any criticism/complaints to the school were swept under the carpet. That happened a couple of weeks before Christmas, and both the head and one class teacher went on long term sick leave just afterwards. Apparently the school is to become part of a multi-academy-trust (as has happened in Exeter) and an interim head has been appointed (word is she is v able).

Worth also noting, though that there are four state Steiner Schools in England: Frome and Exeter have both had emergency OFSTEDS and I believe the same is true of the one in Bristol as well. The only one which hasn't is Hereford, so 75% is quite a track record, even by the rather low standards of free schools.

Thanks for that Onsen.... I'd read as much myself after digging around on FB... but the question now is When on earth is the Ofsted report going to come out?! I believe (could be a bit off) that the inspection happened on the 19th Nov... I understood that the report had to come out within 28 days??

The time given for the report coming out is given in 'working days' - so not counting Christmas holidays or weekends

28 days = 5 working weeks and 3 days.

Assume not while schools were closed, so that takes out 2 weeks (wb 24th and wb 31st December).

So (say) 2 day inspection 19th / 20th November, the remainder of that week would be the 3 days.

3rd December; 1 week and 3 days elapsed.
By the 24th December, 4 weeks and 3 days.
This week would be the next working week after that, so the 28 days should be up next Monday.

It used to be that controversial Ofsted reports could be delayed while schools disputed the findings etc, though from my reading of the latest handbook it looks as if that is not meant to be the case any longer. However if, for example, the school was closed for longer than most schools over Christmas, there could be further days added on to this deadline (depends whether 'working days' is Ofsted's working days or the school's).

i should imagine, given the sensitivity of all of this, it could be one that goes down to, or over, the wire in terms of timing of publication.

I would also suggest that since we are looking at a 28 day deadline, it is pretty clear that the school will be judged to be inadequate - other outcomes have shorter publication times.