Failing School Starts New Regime
Pupils at a failing Somerset school who have been called the most “challenging young people in our society” are having their education overhauled by a private company.
The Priory School in Taunton caters for boys from all over the county with behavioural, social and learning problems.
It has been in special measures for the last three years, the lowest rating the schools inspection body Ofsted can award, and a recent report stated teachers spent more time on “crowd management” than education.
The county council has set the company a target of taking the school out of special measures within two terms and to be rated as good within three.
Lilac Sky’s director and The Priory’s new executive head, Trevor Averre-Beeson, said they were going to flood the school with “positivity” because in “schools that are in special measures often there’s poor morale”.
“They’re normal lads, many of whom are of the normal range of ability,” said Mr. Averre-Beeson. “Because of the upbringing they’ve had or the experience they’ve had, they are where they are but if we come into this thinking that they can’t change I think that’ll be a very sad thing. This is a quick route and easy way for the council to wash their hands of it but it may not be a long-term solution.” Mick Leery, NUT
The school has 46 pupils aged between 11 and 16 who were sent there for a variety of reasons – some have ADHD, while others have Asperger’s Syndrome or Tourettes, but mostly they are “socially deprived”.
Mr. Averre-Beeson said: “Most of them are very capable and like coming to the school. Some of them travel an hour and a half to get here so they clearly want to come, they want to be educated and they want to succeed and that’s what we have to cling on to.”
One way of rewarding them is a merit system where pupils can earn gold awards for good attendance and good attitude. These gold awards then turn into prizes – at the end of the month they can either be given £75 or an MP3 player.
Mr. Averre-Beeson said it would be money well spent and that it was not a simply a bribe. He insisted: “It’s recognising those that do the right thing. I am very happy to fork out for 46 iPods if it means that over a month, all 46 boys have behaved and learned perfectly.”
The company has also put up posters in the classrooms which declare “Keep negative comments to yourself” and “Don’t throw things”.
Mr. Averre-Beeson said all these measures have the aim of making the school as calm as possible.
Although Somerset County Council is paying Lilac Sky £1.6m over five years, the company says it will not be making a profit.
“We like to think of ourselves as social entrepreneurs,” said Mr. Averre-Beeson. “It’s very important for our shareholders that we break even, but it isn’t important that we make a profit. I’m not working here for nothing, we’re working in a contract where we are getting paid but in all honesty, we’re not anticipating making any profit from it.”
But the concept of a private company running a state school is not without its critics. Mick Leery, from the National Union of Teachers in Somerset, said: “This is a quick route and easy way for the council to wash their hands of it but it may not be a long-term solution.”
David Taylor, corporate director of Children and Young People for the council, said: “This is a group of very vulnerable children and we want the best for them.” He said it was a good deal as the council was spending £350,000 annually placing the children who could not be placed in the Priory elsewhere.
By Rebecca Cafe, BBC News, Somerset