Paper petition details
Stop the closure of Raines Foundation Secondary School
It has caused a huge amount of stress and worry for the students
some of whom are in the process of preparing for their GCSEs. The
students that had accepted a place in year 7 for this coming
September now have to find a new school or join Oaklands Secondary
school and the existing students are in limbo until the decision is
made on if the closure is to go ahead.
Raines Foundation has been a part of the community for 300 years
and now faces closure please sign to show your support for the
school, students and staff so we can try and prevent this from
happening.
On reaching 30 signatures Eligible to present to Council
This Paper petition was received on 03/07/2019.
670 people signed this Paper petition.
This is a paper petition received by the council. It has never been available for signature online.
Council response
PROPOSITION TO NOT CLOSE RAINE'S FOUNDATION
Thank you for your petition relating to the council’s public consultation on the future of Raine’s Foundation school.
The council is aware of the long history of the school in the borough and it is with great regret that the current proposal to close the school is being considered.
The council is committed to providing the best opportunities for children and young people and is proud that 97% of pupils attend a good or outstanding school and wants this opportunity to be extended to all children and young people. The decision to consider the possible closure of Raine’s Foundation School was informed by the consideration of a number of factors and is supported by the Anglican Diocese.
The school was identified as ‘a school of concern’ by the Local Authority a number of years ago and the LA’s concerns were confirmed when the school was inspected by Ofsted in November 2015 and the school was judged to Require Improvement. The school had not improved when it was inspected again in 2017, despite considerable support being provided to the school, which has continued.
Pupil numbers have been falling as a consequence of poor results and behaviour issues and this has impacted on the school’s budget. An unannounced Ofsted inspection on 5 July 2018 confirmed concerns about pupil’s behaviour and the findings are set out in their letter dated 13 July 2018. All the reports are available on the Ofsted website.
GCSE results in August 2018 were lower than the previous year in every measure. ‘Progress 8’ declined to such an extent that students achieved, on average, almost a grade lower than they would in another school. Although there was some improvement in English and maths in 2019, standards are still very low.
As a consequence of the poor standards and concerns about behaviour, an interim executive headteacher from another school joined Raine’s on the 1st of September 2018 and an Interim Executive Board was established to govern the school.
By the end of the financial year 2018-19, Raine’s Foundation school had 381 pupils attending years 7-11 (with 750 places the school was at 51% occupancy) and 29 first choice applications to join the school in September 2019. There are currently 228 pupils attending the school.
There was an in-year deficit of £123k in 2018-19 so was unable to make the agreed contribution to repayment of a licenced deficit loan of £1m. This financial position severely undermines the ability of the school to provide a high quality educational offer to its pupils.
The LA approached Oaklands school to become a school improvement partner for Raine’s Foundation school, as it has consistently been judged a Good school by Ofsted and it has amongst the highest results GCSE and A-level results in the borough. This support started on 1st April 2019.
The first consultation has now concluded, with a report due to be considered at Cabinet on the 30th of October 2019. Cabinet will decide whether or not to proceed with the publication of statutory notices and a second consultation which would take place later this year. This will provide an opportunity for all stakeholders to make their views known.
Christine McInnes
Divisional Director, Education and Partnerships
Children and Culture Directorate