The Department for Education today released ‘pre-warning termination notices’ given to two schools – and lifted a prior financial notice on another.
Pre-Warning Notices
Firbeck Academy, in Nottingham, has been told standards are “unacceptably low”. A pre-termination warning notice was sent to the school, run by Nottingham University Samworth Academies Trust, on January 14.
It raised concerns with a 19 per cent drop in KS2 results. The number of pupils achieving Level 4 or above in reading, writing and maths has fallen to 57 per cent – under the Government’s 65 per cent minimum floor standard.
Only 70% of pupils are making expected levels of progress in maths compared to the 93% 2014 floor standard, the letter stated.
Don Valley Academy and Performing Arts College, in Doncaster, also received a notice after its 2014 KS4 results showed a “downwards trajectory”.
The notice was delivered to Schools Partnership Trust Academies (SPTA), the academy chain which operates the school, and is the second largest chain in the country.
The notice warns of a 5% fall in the proportion of students receiving 5 A*-C GCSE grades including English and maths since 2013.
It also said that not enough pupils were making expected levels of progress, with only 52% meeting the bar in English and 44% in maths.
Both schools must respond with an action plan for improvement within 15 working days.
Lifting of a Financial Notice to Improve
Hadlow Rural Community School Trust, in Kent, had a prior financial notice to improve lifted on 11 February, as notified in a letter from the Department for Education.
In August 2014 the Trust was told of concerns relating to the delivery of a new build project and non-submission of required financial returns.
The notice states that after close monitoring and a review meeting in December 2014, the DfE were satisfied that conditions imposed in the financial notice to improve had now been met.
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