Dizzy Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Padgate High School has been included in the list of schools that the Government say must IMPROVE or CLOSE !! After WBC approved the closure of Wooston High School earlier this year all Woolston?s feeder Primary schools are now partnered with Padgate High School. Perhaps Woolston should stay open for a few more years just incase Another Warrington school on the list is William Beamont Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Full details on the main news page http://www.warrington-worldwide.co.uk/articles/2837/1/Schools-threatened-with-closure/Page1.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazj Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 It has never been the same in this town since they got rid of the Grammar School and the girls High School..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Kennedy Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 But when central government talks of closing a school because of poor performance, doesn't it then reopen it as an Academy School which is outside of the direct control of the Local Education Authority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Exactly Paul! Its just a way of fulfilling the Government's target to convert all secondary schools to academies to pull in private finance. Destroying the NHS and destroying state education. I thought we had a Labour government?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Basically, yet another example of a Government that is bankrupt of ideas and devoid of any semblance of it's socialist roots - Kier Hardy must indeed be spinning in his grave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted June 10, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 But when central government talks of closing a school because of poor performance, doesn't it then reopen it as an Academy School which is outside of the direct control of the Local Education Authority. Yep sell it off to rid yourself of a liability Unfortunately Academy Schools are proving not to be quite the 'wonderful learning environment' they were expected to be. I find it hard to understand HOW Padgate High has suddenly appeared on the list of schools that are failing and could close especially as the LEA / WBC has recently conducted an indepth consultation process and evaluation of the facts/figures which led to their decision to approve the closure of Woolston and retention of Padgate. Perhaps Cllr Woodyatt and cronies would like to explain to everyone again.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Accademic now, as this latest gem is being perpetrated by this clueless Government. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eagle Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 The decision to close Padgate now illustrates how bad Woolston must have been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 The decision to close Padgate now illustrates how bad Woolston must have been. Eagle no decision has been made! The school has been told to pull its socks up or face the possibility of closure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dizzy Posted June 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 The decision to close Padgate now illustrates how bad Woolston must have been. but Woolston isn't on the list of schools which are below average so therefore it must be performing better As gary says Padgate will only face closure if it doesn't pull it's socks up, get better results and improve..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McBain Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 And it won't be able to do that because none of the incompetent teachers will be fired Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wahl Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 another crappy idiotic government diktat from a useless idiot called ball Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulo Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 I did point this out to the Exec committee during the consultation period and they chose to ignore this benchmark in favour of cva's which as they are now realising is not a recognised benchmark. Typical that unlike those of us who researched the guidelines, they instead listened to the 'officers' advice, which, surprise surprise was flawed yet again. So as Gary says - no decision has yet been made... They have a full 50 days to formulate a plan to save a school that has NEVER achieved this benchmark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyMac Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 So as Gary says - no decision has yet been made... They have a full 50 days to formulate a plan to save a school that has NEVER achieved this benchmark. Maybe the transfer of some staff and pupils from Woolston to Padgate may help improve the averages. Of course, the one major flaw with this is that parents who would have sent their kids to Woolston seem to be looking at sending their kids to Birchwood instead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 Well, having dumbed down the standard of examinations, created a variety of micky mouse degree subjects in order to get folk into Uni for the sake of it - they seem to be missing one crucial factor - you can't grow knowledge in infertile ground. If kids (and families and peers) don't realise the value of education; if they're content to engage in disruptive behaviour in an enviroment devoid of any semblance of dicipline or respect - you've got a problem. So no amount of targets or massaging stats will solve the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Settle Posted June 11, 2008 Report Share Posted June 11, 2008 Obs are these the main reasons why you think that Padgate & Beamont have failed and Birchwood & Woolston have succeeded? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted June 12, 2008 Report Share Posted June 12, 2008 Now where/when did I say that?! I'm alluding to the general malaise in education,education,education brought about by the slavish adherance of New Labour Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter T Posted June 12, 2008 Report Share Posted June 12, 2008 up before your breakfast, obs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
observer Posted June 12, 2008 Report Share Posted June 12, 2008 Shift in the shift pattern! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Settle Posted June 12, 2008 Report Share Posted June 12, 2008 30% is a very low target indeed - is this what Ian Marks calls it's 4 star service, just imagine if they slipped to 3 or worse. I wonder what his Lib/Dem cohort Councillors of Poulton North have to say on the issue afterall they voted to close Woolston and now the children of their Borough have potentially very few options left? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic Posted June 14, 2008 Report Share Posted June 14, 2008 Gary can no doubt enlighten us as to where he derived the headline "Schools threatened with closure". The DCFS explains the National Strategy thus: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/publications/nationalchallenge/ The National Challenge: Raising standards, supporting schools The National Challenge, launched on 10 June 2008, will support schools with the lowest GCSE results, so that by 2011 at least 30 per cent of pupils in every secondary school will leave with five or more good GCSEs, including English and mathematics. The National Challenge will focus greater attention, help and resources on schools that are currently below this benchmark, with funding of ?400 million. The plans, as outlined in this publication, include the appointment of National Challenge advisers, who will work with National Challenge schools as enhanced School Improvement Partners. There are also proposals to use more radical solutions, including the creation of more academies, targeted at schools that face the biggest challenges. The National Challenge toolkit for schools and local authorities is published alongside Promoting Excellence for All, a School Improvement Strategy, which aims to secure improvement in all our schools, but our first and most urgent commitment is to raise standards in schools with a long history of low attainment. And the press release (1300 words) has just one reference to school closures: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2008_0109 As well as Academies, where a school is completely unable to raise their exam results, the Government will encourage local authorities to close the school and replace it with a National Challenge Trust, providing that they forge new improvement partnerships led by a successful school and a business or university partner. The aim would be to give the school and the community a fresh beginning and a break with previous underachievement; So how come all the press coverage nationwide is in terms of "threats" rather than "improvement"? Who's been spinning? Even some of the "case studies" of improving schools on the DCFS website are well short of the 30% target. See also: "Can one school be both good and bad?" '>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7453051.stm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Posted June 14, 2008 Report Share Posted June 14, 2008 Gary can no doubt enlighten us as to where he derived the headline "Schools threatened with closure". And the press release (1300 words) has just one reference to school closures: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2008_0109 [/url] How many references do you want? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffrey Settle Posted June 16, 2008 Report Share Posted June 16, 2008 Secondary School Performance 2007 the percentage of pupils gaining five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C including English and maths Birchwood Community High School 51% Bridgewater High School 68% Cardinal Newman Catholic High School 53% Culcheth High School 60% Golborne High School 26% Great Sankey High School 54% Lowton High School 45% Padgate Community High School 28% Penketh High School 48% Sir Thomas Boteler Church of England High School 31% St Gregory's Catholic High School 69% William Beamont Community High School 23% Woolston Community High School 35% Hopefully we will see an increase pass rate for this year's cohort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic Posted June 19, 2008 Report Share Posted June 19, 2008 Gary can no doubt enlighten us as to where he derived the headline "Schools threatened with closure". And the press release (1300 words) has just one reference to school closures: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2008_0109 [/url] How many references do you want? Are you admitting that, in a story about putting in money to improve schools, the "last resort" of closure should be a journalist's lead on the item? Sounds like spin to me! I'd assumed there had been some "press notes" or an interview with a minister which had set the hare running. It's not unimportant: stories like this re a primary school could become self-fulfilling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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