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School decisions are a cause for concern
• AS a former governor of Pimlico School, both I and other governors and parents have some serious concerns about the conduct of Westminster Council in the sudden removal of both the long serving headteacher and the governing body by the authority following a recent snap Ofsted inspection which placed the school in special measures.
This was followed by the surprise announcement that Westminster now wish to make the school a city academy.
As governors at Pimlico, we experienced time after time a failure by Westminster to support the school and keep the governing body properly informed of important matters.
Last year the school had to be closed for a week because, due to a long-term lack of maintenance and proper repairs, the building was declared unsafe. On several occasions governors were asked to approve crucial decisions, particularly concerning the redevelopment of the school building, without being given the appropriate information by the authority at the right time.
And it should be emphasised that in all the ‘strategic visions and plans’ for the school that were presented to governors by Westminster, there was no mention of any intention to convert it to a city academy.
The sudden removal of the governing body with a small interim body composed of local authority managers now obviously provides a clear opportunity for Westminster to pursue this goal without debate or consultation.
Unfortunately, as a result there is, some quite reasonable suspicion among governors and parents that this was the reason behind the sudden Ofsted inspection in the first place.
It does seem something of a remarkable coincidence that such an unfavourable report recommending special measures and removal of governors as a result of a snap inspection should appear at such a convenient time for the authority. Both Westminster and Ofsted have been asked to comment on this but, so far, neither has replied.
Sadly, all this does little to inspire confidence in the governance of schools in Westminster nor enhance the reputation of the authority.
CLIVE HELM
Cephas Ave, E1
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