Academies

Oasis gives up Isle of Sheppey academy where most pupils absent

School with four below-'good' ratings in a row will become the first to ever leave England's sixth-largest trust

School with four below-'good' ratings in a row will become the first to ever leave England's sixth-largest trust

9 Feb 2023, 17:00

More from this author

Oasis Community Learning will give up control of a school for the first time, after a damning ‘inadequate’ Ofsted report that found more than half of pupils did not attend regularly.

Oasis Academy Isle Of Sheppey has never been rated ‘good’ or better since opening from the merger of two schools in 2009, with Oasis, the sixth largest trust in England, taking over as sponsor in 2014.

The school has been rated ‘requires improvement’ three times since, before sliding into special measures last year. 

Inspectors found more than half of pupils were not attending regularly, while behaviour was “often dangerous” and the trust did “too little to tackle…racist, sexist and homophobic language”.

The school has seen “too many false fresh starts”, the watchdog warned.

The Department for Education then issued a termination warning notice, threatening to rebroker the school if unconvinced Oasis could deliver rapid improvement.

Parents and staff were told of the transfer today, but a new sponsor has not yet been named.

Trust gives up school ‘with heavy heart’

Isle of Sheppey will be the first school to ever transfer out of 52-school Oasis, which was one of the first academy trusts in England when it launched in 2005.

A trust spokesperson said Oasis was handing over the school “with a heavy heart”, but it followed a “mutual agreement” with government.

Oasis had been unable to deliver the “exceptional” environment young people deserve, despite staff’s hard work, significant investment and new processes, the spokesperson added.

“There are considerable challenges to providing exceptional secondary education on the island, not least the levels of disadvantage that some experience.”

Parts of the Isle of Sheppey rank among the most deprived tenth of areas nationally.

Last year the trust also highlighted challenges including “increased disengagement” during Covid and recruitment challenges for attendance support staff.

The trust has previously said it “intentionally positioned our education services within some of the most challenging and disadvantaged communities”.

Kent Online reported last year that penalty notices for absence across the county were among the highest in England.

New DfE powers to intervene earlier

The government began alerting schools with repeat ‘requires improvement’ ratings they were newly dubbed ‘coasting’ and eligible to be rebrokered in the autumn. Previously powers applied only to ‘inadequate’ schools.

The DfE could have intervened in this case as early as 2015 if the powers had been introduced earlier.

It has emphasised intervention will only be used on a “case-by-case” basis however, and only maintained schools and standalone academies have a ‘presumption in favour’ of rebrokering.

A government spokesperson said the Oasis Academy Isle of Sheppey transfer would ensure “appropriate steps are taken to provide the best possible standard of education”.

It is working to ensure a smooth transfer after it was “mutually agreed” with Oasis.

A trust spokesperson said it remains “deeply committed” to the school and wider community. The Oasis charity will keep helping partners with youth and community work beyond the transfer.

In total, 21 of the 25 most recent inspections of Oasis schools were ‘good’ or better.

Latest education roles from

Group Director of Governance & Company Secretary

Group Director of Governance & Company Secretary

New City College

Principal (Harrow College) – HRUC

Principal (Harrow College) – HRUC

FEA

Deputy Director of Apprenticeships

Deputy Director of Apprenticeships

Manchester Metropolitan University

Independent Non- Executive Director (INED)

Independent Non- Executive Director (INED)

League Football Education

Sponsored posts

Sponsored post

Helping every learner use AI responsibly

AI didn’t wait to be invited into the classroom. It burst in mid-lesson. Across UK schools, pupils are already...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

Retire Early, Live Fully: What Teachers Need to Consider First

Specialist Financial Adviser, William Adams, from Wesleyan Financial Services discusses what teachers should be considering when it comes to...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

AI Safety: From DfE Guidance to Classroom Confidence

Darren Coxon, edtech consultant and AI education specialist, working with The National College, explores the DfE’s expectations for AI...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

How accurate spend information is helping schools identify savings

One the biggest issues schools face when it comes to saving money on everyday purchases is a lack of...

SWAdvertorial

More from this theme

Academies

Free schools update ‘later this year’, and 3 other things we learned from ministers

The education secretary and her team answered MPs' questions in Parliament today

Jack Dyson
Academies

More standalone schools on the brink as deficits grow

Seventy-five trusts – one with a deficit of almost £6 million – raised concerns about their ability to continue...

Jack Dyson
Academies

Specialist MAT given notice to improve after seeking bailout

12-school trust said it had to ask for 'emergency' government cash after 'significant delays' to SEND and free school...

Jack Dyson
Academies

Officials kept mum about academy probe as merger decided

Revelation reopens debate around the transparency of important academy decisions

Jack Dyson

Your thoughts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *