King Edward VII: Parents declare victory as 'forced academization' of Sheffield school is deferred by campaign

Today (May 5) was slated to be the day King Edward VII School found out which Multi Academic Trust it would be joining in the wake of a shock ‘Inadequate’ Ofsted report published in January that prompted a ‘compulsory academization order’ from the DfE.

But now, after months of waiting that also saw a large-scale petition, a protest outside City Hall and an 11th hour letter to officials asking for a reprieve, parents have been told today the decision will be deferred until June or July at the earliest.

In a letter home to parents today, headteacher Linda Gooden wrote she was informed at a meeting this afternoon the process would be paused while a “comparative analysis of additional multi academy trust” was carried out. She added: “I wish to thank you again for your continued support.”

It appears to be a win for the ‘KES the Future’ campaign group, who were unhappy with reports that the school would be joining Brigantia Learning Trust, despite a survey among parents they would prefer to join the Minerva Learning Trust. Notably, out of 400 responses, 80 per cent said they would rather not join a trust at all.

The campaign group criticized the academization process from the beginning, initially arguing the Ofsted report was hasty and unsubstantial, before claiming the process was “shrouded in secrecy” and locking parents out of decision making.

The letter from Ms Gooden indicates the earliest point at which the sponsorship of King Edward VII School will be considered by the Regional Advisory Board will be at its June 2023 meeting, or possibly the July 2023 meeting.

It comes after only yesterday a letter was sent by the group to regional director of the DfE Alison Wilson asking for a reprieve of the decision.

The announcement was set for today in line with the end of the local elections, which the DfE argued prevented it from publishing the decision in case it influenced voters during the ‘purdah’ period.

In the report in January, King Edward VII School, which has sites in Broomhall and Crosspool, was stripped of its ‘Good’ rating by Ofsted and dropped into an ‘Inadequate’ rating. The only aspect of the school deemed ‘inadequate’ was its leadership – but this was enough to drop it into the lowest rating available and prompt an ‘compulsory academisation order’ from the Department for Education.

The strongest criticism seemed to be over the safety of how older pupils were reportedly leaving school grounds at lunchtime. Despite this, the school’s ‘safety’ rating was only ruled to be “requires improvement”.

Parents have raged against the decision ever since, leading to a petition railing against the decision that has since garnered over 3,000 signatures. A protest was also held outside City Hall and was attended by hundreds of households. They have also expressed their concerns about the track record, capacity and lack of experience of the Brigantia Trust, who many believe are set to take over.