DS will probably have to go to a school in ‘special measures’. WWYD?

[DemiBourbon]

We have been living in our current home for 15 years and DS attends a good, local, non-academy primary. DS is due to start year 11 in 2022 so we have to apply in October year.

The local secondary school (an academy) has recently changed the admissions criteria to favour primary schools run by the same academy. This means that DS will definitely not get into this secondary now.

All other schools within the area either ‘require improvement’ or are in special measures. However, this doesn’t really matter as we are outside their catchment areas anyway, so unlikely he’d get a place. He would be bumped to a school 4 miles away which is also currently in special measures. This school is very undersubscribed and only 18% of the pupils achieve good grades in their GCSEs. I believe the behaviour of pupils has improved slightly but still not good.

We live about 4 miles from a better school and have been looking at moving to that area but all we would be able to afford to buy would be the type of house where the owner he passed away and there is no central heating/kitchen and bathroom not really serviceable. We would definitely not have the money to renovate.

So our 2 options are:

Move into a house as described above in time to apply in October

Or:

Stay where we are, let DS attend special measures school and try to pay for a tutor to bring him up to speed.

Has anyone been in a similar situation or had children start at a school which is already in special measures?

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Ok two slightly left field alternatives: 1. when the academy changed its admissions priorities did it do so properly? They needed to have consulted widely and made sure that children were not disadvantaged by the change. It might be possible to argue that children at your child's primary have been disadvantaged because they can no longer attend a local school and now have an unfairly long journey. Might be worth appealing to LGO/ schools adjudicator.

1. Does the preferred school offer subjects or clubs that your child is particularly interested in and that you can document? It is possible to get a place if you appeal if so.

@DemiBourbon

Thank you everyone. These answers are mirroring my own thoughts, going back wards and forward from moving to, well surely this school will have improved by the time he goes there. I suppose if he did end up there we could always put him on the waiting list for the better school and hope a place comes up and no one else on the waiting list lives nearer than us etc. It’s a near 300 child intake so I assume some might move during the school year.

@FTMF30 that would be ideal but we would have to live within a mile of the school to get a place.

@inquietant we are not encouraging this. I think you would have had to have seen his reaction when we discussed moving to be able to judge whether my description is ‘too strong’.

I didn't mean your description is too strong, I mean if he's 'devastated' his reaction is too strong!

The best way to get over this sort of fear can be to just get on. You can't seriously as adults be suggesting you won't move because a child claims they'll be 'devastated' unless you genuinely believe he would be?

@MarieG10 that information is so useful. The special measures school was made up of two separate high schools and turned into an academy. There has been talk of the two sets of teachers not getting on for some reason and the original Ofsted report mentions staffing problems so that makes sense.

@Gubanc all the houses within the catchment area (quite a small area) are similar builds and go for similar prices, there’s not a great deal of choice, but a flat or terrace would definitely be acceptable if one came up.

@titchy yes, the consultation ended on 31st January and despite objections from parents, the council and heads of the primary schools affected the academy have gone ahead with the changes. We’re in contact with the head of DS’s school about appealing. I will definitely look at which clubs they offer though as that might be an option.

@inquietant he did not describe himself as devastated, he is devastated. It’s probably hard for you to gauge this as you were not there to see the conversation unfold. And yes, I am an adult who would consider not moving if it meant my child was happier in the long run. This is part of my dilemma. If you have any advice related to schools which are in special measures it would be gratefully received.

Some adults refuse to believe that children's emotional reactions can possibly be valid unless they would have the same reaction themselves. Some adults pride themselves on discounting children's opinions and see it as superior parenting. Each to their own but dictatorial parents always seem a bit ridiculous to me.

It depends on why it is in special measures. If it is about school management it is easier to fix, if it is about student behaviours and progression than it is more difficult. The 18% good GCSEs would worry me a great deal, it is very very low, I would worry my child needs to go against the grain to get good grades. It also depends on the child, some will strive in "adversity", some will get swept along. It also depends on the cohort, if there is a large enough group of able and willing students it will be ok.
We as parents of course want an easier path for our children, I would probably move if I could afford it. If not moving, I would keep a very close eyes on things, and remember it is support from families that influence the outcomes the most.

@unmarkedbythat

Some adults refuse to believe that children's emotional reactions can possibly be valid unless they would have the same reaction themselves. Some adults pride themselves on discounting children's opinions and see it as superior parenting. Each to their own but dictatorial parents always seem a bit ridiculous to me.

Some parents maybe, but not me.

I think there are times when we have to work out what's right in the round and help our children with it.

Not everyone wants to move house - but many families do to improve their lives, and I think a good school for a child is a worthwhile reason. It's a choice.

I do consider 'devastated' quite extreme over a house, I think I would be wondering how to help my child with that rather than trying to avoid doing it if it was the right choice. My children have only been 'devastated' by losses, not changes, so I have not had to deal with it I guess.

@wydlondon yes, it’s not good. I’m encouraged by the part of the monitoring report which says bullying is rare and behaviour around the school is generally good, which is one of my main concerns. It seems it was the leadership and hit and miss teaching that was the problem. They have replaced a number of teachers and brought in a new head etc.

I thought, generally if a school was in special measures you'd get a new head parachuted in and the school given a good shake up?
With mixed success in my experience.

A lot depends on why a school went into special measures. A school with a fairly middle of the road comprehensive intake, history of being a decent school but has had a couple of years with low results could be in special measures and if I got the right feeling then I would probably consider it as an option for DC because I've known schools like that pick up quickly.
If it's a school that has a historic trend of poor performance, where the school has opened/closed/merged/been taken over by academy chains several times and there's a complex network of factors that mean poor educational outcomes have been the norm for decades then I would sooner move to a smaller house and reevaluate family finances to send them anywhere but there.

@DemiBourbon a good head can turn behaviour around very fast if he gets all staff on board. I’ve seen it.

Also don’t rule out your local school. I work in admissions and our feeder schools only take up just under half of our PAN so many children outside of the feeders get in.

Special measures schools very quickly change. If they're getting a new head, who has proven they are decent, I would expect it to be very different in 2 or 3 years.

There are schools that yo-yo in snd out of category 4/special measures and/or Requires Improvement. So I would look at the history of this school as far back as you can. It is always useless or not?

The exam results are dire. No other way to put it. My guess is that those who can get to another school, do just that. Ofsted will have had data on this school over time. That hsve judged the teaching to be poor over time. They no longer go into lessons for detailed observation. They are looking at the starting points of DC and probably are finding that most DC are under performing. You can look at detailed data too on the government web site. It gives outcomes for high, middle and low achievers. To be in SM I doubt any group is making good progress.

To be blunt, heads come in and can improve behaviour. The difficult DC are excluded. Classrooms can then be quieter. Teachers get on with teaching. Teachers know they will be backed up by SLT if a child misbehaves and bullying has consequences.

Getting all teachers to be good teachers in all subjects is way more of a challenge. Some simply don’t care. Some will leave and some will try their best. Some will relish the challenge. Recruitment is key. Use of numerous supply teachers is not good.

You need to look at everything that is happening but if this is a yo-yo school I wouldn’t expect great things in the future unless brighter MC children turn up in droves with parents who want the best. Often schools like this have to push academics but forget about music, drama, art and competitive sport and clubs to stimulate dc. Would they ever have debating societies, school orchestra, maths and chess clubs? I would advise you to be more discerning than just the first report praising behaviour. The tough bit is just starting! Achievement and progress.

To put this into context: I live in a grammar school county. We have secondary moderns as a result because the grammar children are in the grammar schools (13 of them). The results of your school are worse than any of our secondary moderns with all the brightest dc missing. If this is a comprehensive it’s got very poor results. There are virtually no high achieving children there! Look at the scores for GCSEs and A levels on the government web site. Compare it with other schools. This is a massive job to improve it.

@titchy do you know whether the academy could go ahead with the proposed changes in admissions criteria despite the local council leader, heads of primary schools and parents objecting or can they be forced to stay with the current criteria? Thanks

Give the school a go. The change can be fast and the reality of a special measures school can be very different. Mine have been to schools at both ends of the ofsted ratings categories and the school which was the least effective,and least kind, of the two was famously outstanding.

[quote DemiBourbon]@titchy do you know whether the academy could go ahead with the proposed changes in admissions criteria despite the local council leader, heads of primary schools and parents objecting or can they be forced to stay with the current criteria? Thanks[/quote]
I don't know tbh. You could look at Schools Adjudicator decisions or shout out to @admission or @prh47bridge as regular experts.

Sorry to clarify - an academy or LEA can be forced to revert to original admissions criteria. Whether they would depends on why they proposed the change and what the objections were - and admission and prh are far more knowledgeable. You could refer to the SA yourself though.

[quote DemiBourbon]@titchy do you know whether the academy could go ahead with the proposed changes in admissions criteria despite the local council leader, heads of primary schools and parents objecting or can they be forced to stay with the current criteria? Thanks[/quote]
Yes, they can. The presence of objections is not, of itself, enough to stop the academy changing its admission arrangements. If the consultation was inadequate they can be forced to stay with the current criteria. If the consultation met the requirements of the Admissions Code they can still be forced to change their criteria if the new criteria are in breach. In this particular case, if the Adjudicator ruled that the Trust cannot name just its own schools as feeders, that doesn't guarantee a return to the old criteria. If there is another way of complying with the ruling the academy could take that option. However, returning to the old criteria would be the simplest thing to do.

There is previous case history that suggests the academy may not be able to prioritise primary schools run by the same trust. A few years ago, Aspirations Academies Trust lost a legal battle against the Schools Adjudicator after they attempted to go down this route. The Adjudicator ruled this was unfair on other local schools due to the distance to the next nearest secondary school. It is possible the same applies here. However, if the trust can show there are significant links between the schools beyond simply being part of the same trust, the new criteria may be acceptable.

I would recommend getting an objection in to the Schools Adjudicator as soon as possible.

Some Academy Chains are dire at acting on Special Measures
others are fab
it depends on the chain.
In some LA schools, the SM ruling and parachuting in of expert team is the best thing to happen for all pupils

Have you read the full ofsted report?

It will give you an idea of why they are in special measures and what they need to do to change it.

DemiBourbon, in my area (comprehensive) the most sort after schools get about 70%+ good GCSE (9-5), the worst one (result-wise), gets about 30% something and it is rated good but really no one wants it and it is chronically undersubscribed, it is the one I would move, and remortgage to avoid if possible. My children would probably be ok there in terms of results but it is not the experience I would like for them. It is not only the teaching, but also extra curricular activities too. But if I had no choice, I would move on mentally and help them academically as much as possible , and get them to join sports clubs, music lessons out of schools.

There is 1 local school in Special Measures but traditionally it wasn't a bad school and is still a "banker" for some students. It is having new buildings built and it is being helped by a top private school. It is Catholic so it is getting help from the church and the local Catholic schools. Their feeder Catholic primaries are good. In their case, I am quite hopeful they will turn it around.

Being undersubscribed is an issue, it puts the school in a difficult financial situation. Schools work on economies of scale, so bums on seats are important especially in times of funding cuts.

Hopefully open days will be back on at some point, then you can go and get a feel (although if it in Sept it will be leaving it really late). Failing that, I would probably have a look outside of the school gates when schools are back, in the morning or home time. I know it sounds a bit crazy, but it might make you either "move at all costs", or " actually I can see my child here". I have a child in Yr6, when I went to Open Days (luckily I went when mine was in Yr4 before lockdowns), I was more interested in how the students are (esp the older ones), than the talks or the buildings.

@prh47bridge thank you, that is so helpful. Will have a look at the case you mention. There is another secondary (also dire) within 1.5 miles of the ‘good’ one so this my mean that distance to next available secondary will not be picked up by the adjudicator. We are due to fine out on 15th March whether the changes will be applied.

Thank you all for your input. It’s such a stressful time and the responses on this thread are helping a lot.