Nine in 10 primary leavers get their first choice secondary school, council says

Almost 90 per cent of Year 6 pupils in the county have been awarded their first choice of secondary school, North Yorkshire County Council has revealed. 

Since the deadline for applications at the end of October, families across the district have been waiting anxiously to find out whether their child will be able to move up to the school of their choice.

The long wait ended this morning when parents and carers were informed which school their children would have to attend in the autumn. 

A total of 89.84 per cent secured their first preference, with 96.4 per cent of all families in the county who requested a school place receiving an offer from North Yorkshire County Council for one of their top three preferences of secondary school. 

This year, 6,262 North Yorkshire pupils are transferring to secondary school. 

The county council’s executive member for education, learning and skills, Cllr Annabel Wilkinson, said:  

“Once again, so many of our families have gained the first preference from their choice of schools, which is great news.” 

In North Yorkshire, parents can list up to five schools in order of preference on their common application form, but this year, some parents did not use all five options and others did not complete an application form at all. 

This meant that the council, which must ensure each child is allocated a school place on national offer day, had to place some children in schools further way from their home.

However, disappointed parents can appeal, and the council said its admissions team would try to accommodate their wishes. Appeals for a place at a particular secondary school must be received by March 29; these will be assessed between April and June.

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Ripley primary school seeks to join academy after ‘inadequate’ rating

A primary school in Ripley rated ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted this week is in negotiations to join an academy.

Ofsted’s report said parents valued Ripley Endowed C of E Primary School but was highly critical of the quality of education, leadership and early years provision.

The government schools inspector added that pupils were often distracted because work is too easy or too hard and “achieve far less than they should”.

North Yorkshire County Council, the local authority responsible for education, said today it was working with the school governors and interim school leaders to make improvements at the 49-pupil school.

The council also revealed that it was talking to the Diocese of Leeds and the regional schools commissioner to find an academy sponsor.

Academies are funded directly by the government and are run by an academy trust. Academy sponsors work with the trust to improve the performance of the school.

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Ripley is currently part of a federation of three schools, along with Kettlesing Felliscliffe Community Primary School and Beckwithshaw Community Primary School.

Putting in place improvements

Amanda Newbold, the assistant director for education and skills said:

“We are currently working with governors and interim school leaders to put in place the necessary improvements.

“The county council is working with the Diocese of Leeds and the regional schools commissioner to find an academy sponsor and to ensure the school has strong governance in place during this period of transition.

“We will work closely with the school, the wider community, parents, carers and pupils as we approach the next chapter for the school.”

Ofsted inspectors visited the school over two days in November 2021 when they observed lessons, spoke to pupils informally and met parents at the start of the day.

Here is how the inspectors came to the overall ‘inadequate’ rating:

Ofsted rates Ripley primary school as ‘inadequate’

Ofsted has rated Ripley Endowed C of E Primary School as ‘inadequate’ for the first time in the school’s history.

The 49-pupil school had a ‘good’ rating in 2011 but subsequently received ‘requires improvement’ ratings in 2015, 2017 and 2019.

The latest report, published yesterday, says pupils feel safe, safeguarding arrangements are effective and parents value the school. It also says pupils are polite and well mannered and there is no bullying in school.

But it is highly critical of the quality of education, leadership and early years provision. It is also critical of behaviour and attitudes and personal development.

Pupils, says Ofsted, are often distracted because work is too easy or too hard and “achieve far less than they should”.

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‘Inadequate’ is the lowest of four possible ratings. The report says:

“Ripley Endowed Church of England School is a warm and caring school. Pupils feel safe here. They support, help and care for each other.

“Parents value the school and the staff that work here. The quality of education that pupils receive is inadequate.

“Despite the teachers wanting the pupils to achieve, the curriculum is not designed or planned well enough to support them to do this.”

Ofsted inspectors visited the school over two days in November 2021 when they observed lessons, spoke to pupils informally and met parents at the start of the day.

Here is how the inspectors came to the overall ‘inadequate’ rating:

The Stray Ferret approached Ripley Endowed C of E Primary School for its response to the Ofsted rating. We were directed to North Yorkshire County Council, the local education authority, but it did not respond by the time of publication.

Ripley is part of a federation of three schools. The other two schools are Kettlesing Felliscliffe Community Primary School and Beckwithshaw Community Primary School.

Parents vow to fight closure of ‘fantastic’ Woodfield primary school

A group of parents has vowed to fight plans to close Woodfield Community Primary School in Bilton.

North Yorkshire County Council said this week the school would ‘technically close’ in September under plans to merge it with Grove Road Community Primary School.

Woodfield has been unable to find an academy willing to take it on since it was rated inadequate by Ofsted in January last year.

A joint statement signed by the headteachers and chairs of governors at both schools hailed the move as “an exciting opportunity to enhance our educational offer”.

But several parents were shocked and angered by the news when they met the Stray Ferret yesterday.

They said Woodfield had made tremendous progress since it was rated inadequate — a view supported by an Ofsted monitoring visit in June, which said ‘leaders and managers are taking effective action towards the removal of special measures’.

Kerry Bartle and son Tyler Woodfield School

Kerry Bartle and her son, Tyler

Kerry Bartle, who has had six children at the school over 23 years, said the proposed merger was a “devastating blow” to families that had stuck with the school and worked hard to improve it when others had left.

The number of pupils has roughly halved to 56 in recent years due to the poor Ofsted and a rapid turnover of headteachers. But Ms Bartle said it had improved significantly in the last 18 months, despite covid, and closure was being rushed into disturbingly quickly. She added:

“No child should be worried like ours are now as to what is going to happen to them next.

“My son is in year 4 and has mobility issues. He would struggle at the Grove site

“Woodfield is such an amazing community. We can’t fault the school as it is today.”

‘They will build on it’

Mike Fryer, a grandparent, thinks the council is using merger as a stepping stone towards closing the large Woodfield site and using it for housing.

“Within two years they will close it down and build on it. This has been on the cards since the start. They have made the school unviable, and since when should schools be all about money?”

There are also fears the Woodfield site will provide early years education and a nursery for Grove Road, forcing some families with more than one child to have to drop off and collect from both schools.

Louise Newport said she would look for another school altogether if this happened. She said:

“My son is autistic and his summer holiday will be horrendous if he has to move. Woodfield school has done so much for the children.

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Naomi Tomlinson, who has two children at Woodfield, also said she would look for another school, adding:

“Ask any kids and they will say it is a fantastic school. As far as we were aware it was doing well so this is a real shock.”

The parents also questioned whether such swift action would be taken to close a school in a better-off part of Harrogate.

The council’s response

The Stray Ferret put a series of questions to North Yorkshire County Council, including whether it could reassure parents that no children would have to move from either site.

We received the following response from Amanda Newbold, assistant director for education and skills, said:

“Woodfield Primary School became eligible for intervention by the Regional Schools Commissioner (RSC) having been judged inadequate by Ofsted at inspection in January 2020. Subsequently the school was issued with a Directive Academy Order but the RSC was unable to secure an academy trust to sponsor the school due to viability concerns.

“We have supported the school through the provision of successful temporary leadership since the inspection. The latest Ofsted monitoring report of Woodfield in July states that “leaders and managers are taking effective action towards the removal of special measures” and it is important to recognise the efforts of all those who have been involved in this improvement journey.

“However, the current arrangements can only be temporary and the absence of an academy sponsor means the school faces an uncertain future. Therefore, work began earlier this year to assess how education provision within the Woodfield community could be preserved.

“The current proposals have been developed by members of the school governing bodies and our officers. The two governing bodies carefully considered the proposals before half term, and both agreed to ask us to start a consultation.

“Families, staff, and other members of the local community will have opportunities to consider the detail of the proposals during the consultation period.

“The proposed amalgamation would be achieved through the technical closure of Woodfield School, and the enlargement of Grove Road CP School through future use of the Woodfield site.

“This would provide an exciting opportunity to enhance the facilities of Grove Road School, organising sustainable education across both sites aiming for the best possible provision for all pupils, and importantly ensuring that the Woodfield site continues to be used for education of the wider community.

“The governing bodies and our officers believe that these proposals would be the best way of achieving their joint aims of improving local education provision at this time.”

 

 

The September scramble to book Santa after a difficult year

When I overheard a mum saying she had set her alarm for 5.30am to book a Santa visit when tickets went on sale, I was pretty shocked.

Mainly because it’s September, but also because I didn’t realise this was now a thing.

Is the surge in popularity due to the pandemic and feeling like our kids missed out last year? Or is this now another “must-do” task to tick off on our ever-growing festive to-do lists? Don’t get me started on Elf on a Shelf and Christmas Eve boxes – cheers for that America.

Sally Haslewood, founder of Harrogate Mumbler, said:

“I think that September has always been a time that people start booking Christmas things – well people who are organised do anyway. I’ve never been that organised!

“I think particularly this year, parents want to give their kids a really good Christmas. They probably missed out last year so they want to book early to avoid disappointment.

“And to be honest I don’t necessarily see it as a bad thing, because I think it will help the businesses as well. If it helps them plan and staff properly and know where they are from a business point of view I think that can only be a good thing.”

Now I am all about making my children happy, I love seeing their little faces light up when they see Father Christmas. But is there now more pressure than ever to deliver the best experience for your little ones?

If you can’t afford a visit or, God forbid, you forget to book anything in time, do you feel like a bad parent?

Sally said:

The thing is around Harrogate there are always last minute things that crop up as well. So if like me you are not as organised and you haven’t booked something for Christmas, there are always things you can get in last minute.

I think this year is potentially a little bit worse than normal, but parents are pretty organised. As soon as the kids are back at school in September, the next big thing is Santa visits. So hopefully this year the kids will have the Christmas they missed out on last year.”

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Don’t panic if you haven’t got yours booked yet. Here are three ideas for you:

Mother Shipton’s – Knaresborough

Wander through the winter woodland to see the enchanted Christmas Village, festooned with festive delights and merry displays to marvel at along the way.

Chief Elf Chestnut will be delighted to meet little visitors and lead them to see Santa Claus.

Santa will be keeping warm in his cosy grotto, and visitors can say hello or take an ‘elfie with the big man himself.

To keep Santa safe, Mother Shipton’s will be adhering to social distancing, but visitors will be able to see and speak to him before he sets off on his long journey.

November 21 – December 24. Click here to buy tickets. 

Santa’s Grotto – Stockeld Park 

December 3 – December 24. Click here to buy tickets.

 

Harrogate district parents ‘crushed’ about schools not reopening

For many parents in the Harrogate district, yesterday’s announcement that schools were unlikely to fully reopen until at least March 8 was not what they wanted to hear.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said reopening was dependent on “lots of things going right”, including infection rates.

It means many parents and guardians are looking at another lengthy stint as teachers, placing more stress in particular on working parents.

Although parents agree safety is paramount, they are concerned about the impact of lengthy home schooling.

Sally Haslewood, who is managing director of Harrogate Mumbler and a mother of two daughters, said:

“I am really struggling with home schooling them both as well as trying to keep them healthy, happy and run my own business. To be perfectly honest, Boris’ statement last night was crushing.

“The general feeling amongst the other parents I speak to is that they are all incredibly fed up and don’t know how long they will cope for. The emotional drain of it all is an absolute killer.”

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Laura Berryman, from Bilton, is home schooling two children while caring for a four-month-old baby. She said the announcement only “enhances the feelings of stress and failure”.
“It was really deflating. I have friends who can’t work at the moment so have no income. I thought of them, and how much the kids are missing their friends and it all becomes overwhelming.
“I am finding home schooling extremely difficult as they are just nowhere near as engaged as they would be at school.”

Mental health

Tracy Atkinson, a mum-of-two from Harrogate, agreed it was right to delay schools fully reopening but has concerns about the mental health impact on parents and children. She said:
“We all saw the numbers escalate in September when the schools and universities reopened, and if we are to get out of this mess we need to get the numbers right down otherwise we will be back to square one again.
“I worry about mental health, mine included. My son has had his head in his studies every day since this started, but with no idea as to what is happening with A-levels and how things will be graded it is a concern.”

Resit year

Kerry Windsor. who lives in Killinghall with two children, suggested offering students a resit year but added it won’t be possible to know when it will be safe for all children to go back to school until the effectiveness of the vaccine is clear. She added:
“My youngest has autism and struggles socially and certainly isn’t ready to start high school next year. My eldest has found it incredibly difficult to complete art assignments due to the resources needed from school. I feel that to put them back a year would be so beneficial.”
Another mother-of-two from Nidderdale agreed, who did not wish to be named, agreed a resit year would be a good ideal. She said:
“The children have missed an awful lot of schooling. I think it is only fair for those that want the opportunity to catch up to have the opportunity to re-take the year. By missing so much they are at a huge disadvantage!”
District parents “delighted” as schools reopen next week

As schools across the district prepare to return next week after more than five months away, some parents have said they’re “delighted” to know their children can return to classroom learning.

Coronavirus forced schools to close in March leaving most children to continue learning from home. Parents in the district have also spoken out about their worries over the educational impact further delays could have.

Schools will look different next month, with ‘bubbles’ in place and regular hand sanitising to prevent transmission.

Laura Berryman, from Bilton is sending her twins into year three next month. She said:

“I am 100% ready for them to go back. They are both excited to see their friends, we are feeling prepared, we’ve been told what to expect by the school hopefully it’ll all be fine. The small risk of getting it is outweighed by the impact of what they could miss out on. I don’t want them to go backwards, the thought of them at home any longer scares me.”

James from Harrogate is sending his son into year 10. He said:

“I’m delighted he’s returning to school, it couldn’t come soon enough. I’ve been disappointed with how the school has handled it. He had little work until three weeks before summer. The school had no idea how to use the technology and that made it more difficult, I don’t know why it was made out to be so difficult. I just hope the schools are using common sense to manage covid, the kids wellbeing is paramount. He’s excited to get back and speak to his friends it’s massively beneficial to have that social interaction.”

Kids walking to school in Harrogate

Kids walking to school will be a common sight once again as schools gear up to put measures in place.

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Some schools are yet to announce how school buses are to go ahead raising further questions for parents.

Nicola Crebbin has twin boys going into year nine. She said:

“I am ready for them to go back. I have no worries about health risks but it would be good to know more regarding procedures and transport. I am slightly concerned that the children’s education may be held back waiting for others who didn’t (or couldn’t) engage in education during lockdown to catch up, time will tell. Both prefer remote school to being in school, less distracted by other children and lack of peer pressure enabled them to be more creative. Although they did find the work set a little dull.”

Harrogate parents meet up to walk and talk once again

Ready steady mums, a group for new parents to meet up and go for a walk with their babies, is back up and walking.

The group, which ‘actively embraces motherhood’ had to stop its weekly meet-ups due to coronavirus. But four months on, it has now been able to resume, with many new mums who had their babies during lockdown joining the established group.

Rasheen, who lives in Harrogate, told us that it has really helped to talk to other mums that have been through a similar experience.

“We’ve all had corona babies, so it’s great to now meet new mums like myself… It was a really difficult time for me, my baby was in special care for a week and my husband wasn’t allowed in, and during a time like that you need that family support, your partner, your mum, your dad. It’s good to be able to get advice from others and find out what is normal.”

Mums meeting

Ready Steady Mums, Harrogate

The group meets at 10am every Friday on the Stray, on the corner of Milton Way close to Leeds Road. Parents are asking to bring hand gel, a picnic rug and drink/ flask.

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Cheryl Mckee is one of the organisers of Ready Steady Mum, and also used to be a midwife. She said:

“It’s totally safe, we socially distance and it’s a great way to get some fresh air. For mums who had their babies in lockdown, it’s been very lonely. So it’s nice for them to see other mums, and chat about their experiences and just help each other along.”

Set up in spring 2016, the group previously met weekly at St Mark’s Church to walk a circular route together, returning to the church for tea, coffee and cake afterwards. Many of the attendees went every week while their babies were young.

Now, at the end of the 40-minute walk, which goes around the Stray, the group sit and have a picnic together on the Stray.

Frances Langford, who was a midwife in Harrogate for 30 years, said the group helps both the physical and mental health of parents:

“It’s the social mixing and talking to other mums… It gives people structure so they think, ‘oh, I have got something to do on Friday’, otherwise when you have a newborn every day can just run into one.”

Harrogate parents pleased as playgrounds set to reopen

Playgrounds are set to reopen from 4 July delighting many parents and guardians in the district.

The sunny weather has brought many people out into the parks to enjoy the outdoors and from next month the playgrounds will also be open for children to enjoy.

One parent told The Stray Ferret:

“Its really hard to keep telling them that everything is closed so it’ll be nice to have a bit of normality back”.

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But not all were in agreement, some parents are still worried about how these places can be kept clean:

“I’m a little nervous just because of all the touching and the kids in close quarters, I don’t know if they’re going to be cleaning it regularly.”

Harrogate parents were pleased with the announcement that playgrounds could reopen but still hoped safety measures would be put in place.

The announcement is a welcome relief for parents and guardians who have had children waiting to be allowed to use their local parks.

Harrogate Borough Council has said it’s looking at plans to open the facilities and more information will be released soon.

Parents and teachers raise concerns over delay in schools reopening
A teachers union has raised concerns over the impact the delay in reopening primary schools may have on children.
The decision has left the NASUWT teachers’ union worried about the mental and educational effects on children.

One of the central concerns highlighted by the union is the impact on vulnerable children, some children in the district may have struggled over lockdown to maintain homeschooling so could be more at risk of needing to catch up once schools re-open.

The government plan would have allowed for all primary school pupils to return to school for a month before the end of the summer term. This delay is re-opening has increased the concerns for the educational and mental health impact of this decision.

Sharon Calvert is the Harrogate representative for the NASUWT Teachers’ Union. She raised her concerns about the effect on children of delaying the opening:
“The impact on children’s education will be immense and many changes will have to be made. The curriculum will have to be adapted, exams looked at and there will need to be the facilities for students to access mental health specialists. There may be students who have witnessed domestic abuse during lockdown who will need support and possibly students who have literally been malnourished – we forget that there is poverty in Harrogate.
“Teachers in the Harrogate want to get back to teaching their students but in a safe environment that poses no danger to their students, their selves or their families. It will be challenging for all teachers as they will have to assess students and differentiate accordingly. It may be that extra teachers/support staff will need to be employed for several months to enable students to catch up.”
It will be a while until classrooms are full again, but teaching staff are preparing for pupils to enjoy a safe return in September.

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A gap in education could be felt by all children once they return to their school environment. Parents in the district also worry about the impact this delay could have on their children.
Laura Walters’s son is eight years old and attends Pannal Primary School in Harrogate. She said:
“I’m worried about the effect that it will have on our child’s mental health especially for children with SEN as the social aspect of school is crucial for some children. Homeschooling is definitely no replacement for being at school, I hope that the curriculum will reflect the large chunk of time missing from their educations.”
Amy Ball’s son is seven years old and also attends Pannal Primary School. She said:
“I’m frustrated that it was ever even mentioned by the government as a possibility. Realistically schools could never have more classes in 15-child bubbles based on space alone. More classes could only have been able to go back if the overall restrictions were hugely lifted. I’m mostly stressed about the detrimental effect 6 months away from education (and perhaps more importantly, peers) will have on the mental health of my child.”