King Edward VII Sheffield: Parents hopeful new Ofsted inspection will see academy plan axed

Officials arrived at King Edward VII School, which has sites in Broomhill and Crosspool, for a one-day 'monitoring visit' on Tuesday. But it then turned into a two-day inspection, which parents believe could see it regraded. And if it gets a ‘good’ or above this time, they are hopeful the academisation order could be halted.

King Ted’s is the only remaining local authority-maintained secondary in Sheffield. It was downgraded from ‘good’ to ‘inadequate’ by the education watchdog after a visit in September. The shock result led to it being lined up by the Department for Education to become an academy and join a multi-academy trust. Parents, who are campaigning against the plan, say the new inspection is potentially good news.

Parent Emma Wilkinson said: “The school has been asking Ofsted to come back, and regrading might be a way to prevent forced academisation. My understanding is that if it gets a ‘good’ or above there is a precedent that the Secretary of State could stop it. It’s happened elsewhere, it does give us hope.”

The ‘full graded inspection’ also means 554 parent views would be taken into account, she added. Some 90 per cent said their child is happy at the school, 89 per cent would recommend it and 91 per cent of children said they feel safe there.

Emma added: “It’s hard to get too excited before we hear the outcome. But this is potentially really positive.”

Headteacher Linda Gooden sent an email about the Ofsted inspection thanking students for their 'amazing conduct' on Tuesday and announcing they would be returning for a full day on Wednesday, when they would be on both sites.

She added: "It is really important that the inspectors see our school at its absolute best because we know it’s a really good school and we want them to see this."

And she said it would be 'really fantastic' if pupils could bring their equipment, display great behaviour and conduct, arrive on time, engage and focus on learning, follow the dress code and be prepared to talk about your positive experiences, 'as you usually do'.