St James the Great R.C. (VA) Primary and Nursery

SchoolLearning with God’s Love

Academy Status

Parental Consultation

Purpose of meeting

• To confirm our school’s vision and values• To advise parents of the Governors’

discussions regarding Academy status• To clarify what an Academy is • To discuss the advantages and risks of a

transfer • To seek your views as part of the wider

consultation process

Our Vision and Values

We are committed to;• Catholic education• Maximising student progress• Inspirational teaching and learning• Innovative ways of working• Developing and supporting pupils and parents• Making a positive contribution to community

improvement and inter-school links

Our History

• In 1994 St James the Great School became one of the first primary schools in Croydon to convert to Grant Maintained status.

• This move was supported by the vast majority of parents and agreed with the Diocese and LA

• In 1999 GM status was abolished and the School returned to Voluntary Aided status.

• Our time under GM status is recognised as a successful period in the School’s history

What is an academy?

• Academies are state-funded schools that are not accountable to the Local Authority

• Academies have greater autonomy in terms of curriculum and finance

• It is not part of the original first phase of academies which were sponsored by third-party business

Why Consider Academy Status?

We as a school have a responsibility to;

- Ensure the delivery of the best education

- Ensure we maintain services for pupils and staff alike

- Serve the wider Catholic community

- Consider options which allow us to achieve the above objectives

Why now?

• The political landscape

• Greater freedom to teach what we think is important

• Finances

• The School’s current position in terms of finances and ability to make the change

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St James the Great R.C. (VA) Primary and Nursery School

Learning with God’s Love

Where does the money come from?

• Local Authority Central Spend Equivalent Grant (LACSEG)

• The majority of services that Croydon provide and that we make a contribution to fund are not used by the school.

• Those services that are required will still be purchased – no change to provision

• We are in a good position to make the change

What does this mean for the school?

• Surplus money from Grant will fund school priorities and maintain provision.

• Continue to be subject to Ofsted inspections

• Continue to be accountable to the Diocese

• Catholic ethos will remain – school will continue to look & feel the same

What does this mean for the school?

• Land and property would continue to be owned by Diocese

• Governors appointed in similar way i.e. majority by Archbishop

• Staff pay, terms and conditions remain the same

• Continue to work with other schools and wider community

It does not mean…

• Changing our name or uniform• Sponsorship from a third party or joining

a federation of academies• Changing our admissions policy• Sweeping changes to the curriculum• Compulsory pairing with weaker schools• Changing SEN support

Concerns

• Have the costs been considered?

• Staff pay and conditions

• What happens if future funding is cut?

• What happens if future governments change policy?

• What happens to other schools ‘left behind’?

If we become an Academy…

• Improved finances to meet school’s needs

• Maintain and improve buildings and resources

• Retention and recruitment of best teachers

• Targeted support and reasonably sized teaching groups

• Improved results

Summary

• There are clear advantages– Finance

– Greater self governance

– Maintain name, ethos, culture within school

• There are risks– Greater responsibility and liability

– Keeping staff/parents/pupils happy through change

• But what is the risk of doing nothing?