Former teachers, governors and pupils as well as current parents have raised concerns about the planned academisation of a city centre primary school.
As St Nicholas’ Catholic Primary on Orthes Street prepares to join the St Joseph Catholic Multi Academy Trust next month, many have questioned the decision of the Archdiocese of Liverpool to allow the move to go ahead. It prompted one parent to say “if it's not broke, why fix it?”
The St Joseph Catholic Multi Academy Trust is run in partnership between the Archdiocese of Liverpool, the Diocese of Shrewsbury and the Diocese of Chester, to oversee Catholic schools in the North West. It was established last autumn with St Nicholas’ becoming the first school to join the new set up.
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The move has prompted anger among some in the community, with a parent questioning the decision on Facebook. They said: “My kids go here. The most recent Ofsted inspection praised the governors and head teacher, the leadership, as having been instrumental in turning it around.
“Personally, I'd say it doesn't feel like it makes a lot of sense to remove that leadership team and replace it after all the work that's been done. And the transformation has been pretty profound. It's a good school, my kids love it. If it's not broke, why fix it?”
Another five schools will join the academy trust in due course. Central ward Cllr Nick Small, a former governor, has written to the Archdiocese to request a meeting to discuss the reasons for the move and has questioned the supposed lack of consultation with ward members.
A former teacher at the school took to Facebook to add their disappointment, sharing a letter they had sent to city leaders including Mayor Joanne Anderson and Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram. It said that the move to become part of an academy would “wipe away all the years of hard work and dedication from staff to provide stability for children” and staff and children “will be faced with further upheaval and changes unnecessarily.”
The letter said the school had worked hard to turn itself around since a poor Ofsted review in 2016 and claimed all staff were “opposed to the academisation of St. Nicholas’.”
A spokesperson for the school said: “St Nicholas’ was previously subject to an academy order by the Department for Education, which means that it had to become an academy. The school’s Governing Body later agreed for it to join St Joseph Multi Academy Trust.
“We see this as a positive development that will support the school’s ongoing progress, and which will ensure that our pupils receive the very best education and lead to significant investment in the school.
“There is a host of evidence that shows that working within a family of schools leads to the strongest teaching through shared best practice, which then produces excellent outcomes. We are looking forward to joining St Joseph and excited for the school’s future.”
