Parents and MP call for halt to academy school cuts

Parents and politicians are calling for action to stop teaching staff and subjects being cut at two Dorset schools.

Initio Learning Trust's restructuring of Queen Elizabeth's (QE) School in Wimborne and Corfe Hills School in Corfe Mullen has sparked anger and concern about the trust's financial management and executive pay.

Mid Dorset and North Poole MP Vikki Slade has asked schools minister Georgia Gould for an independent investigation into the trust's finances and governance.

Initio Learning Trust said it had met with Slade and, throughout the restructuring consultation, had "prioritised transparency and fairness". The Department for Education has been asked to comment.

Jindy Atwal and Helena Doherty both have children at QE and are part of a parents' group - Stand Up for Dorset Schools.

"We want these people to be able to continue teaching and supporting our children," said Atwal.

Atwal and Doherty, who are both teachers at other schools, also fear Initio - which runs 19 schools in Dorset - could be absorbed into an even bigger multi academy trust.

"We cannot undo the trust system but we want to keep Initio local and small," said Atwal, who is also a Dorset councillor.

"Academies were intended to give independence from local authorities but instead of having a local authority telling them what to do, they now have these multi academy trusts."

Doherty said worried parents had been delving into Initio's published accounts and were alarmed by executive pay increases and other charges.

"It's absolutely obscene - it's money that should be used for children," she said.

"It's just a dysfunctional system. When you make a complaint, it just goes into the ether."

In her letter to Gould, Slade said the two schools were cutting between £700,000 and £800,000 from their budgets.

She said: "Corfe Hills is more than halving its teaching assistant cohort and reducing staffing in French and science.

"Queen Elizabeth is cutting staffing in creative subjects such as performing arts, music, psychology and media studies, removing them from both GCSE and A-level options."

Slade said the trust was cutting the amount it charges its schools for central services from £500 per pupil to £400 but she remained concerned, particularly about potential conflicts of interest and the effect of teaching assistant cuts on children with special educational needs.

She asked the minister for an "independent investigation into the financial management and governance" of Initio, a temporary pause on the restructuring, and legislation to ensure all multi academy trusts are "meaningfully accountable" regarding "pay scales, conflicts of interest and the appropriate deployment of non-teaching staff".

A Initio spokesperson said: "We would like to thank Vikki Slade MP for meeting recently with the CEO where we had the opportunity to discuss her concerns.

"Throughout the consultation, we have prioritised transparency and fairness, holding meetings and providing reassurance to ensure all stakeholders can engage meaningfully.

"The future sustainability of our schools is extremely important and decisions will centre on how we can continue providing the best education experience for our young people.

"The consultation remains ongoing and will consider all options before any final decisions are taken."

The consultation ends on Thursday and parents holding banners gathered outside QE School on Wednesday morning to show their support for staff.