Failing free school told to close
One of the Government's flagship free schools - Discovery New School in Crawley, West Sussex - has been ordered to close amid continuing concerns about the standard of education it is offering.
One of the Government's flagship free schools - Discovery New School in Crawley, West Sussex - has been ordered to close amid continuing concerns about the standard of education it is offering.
A free school ordered to close by the Department of Education has said that it "echoed its concerns" regarding "inadequate" education being provided by the school in West Sussex.
The Discovery New School's chair of governors Chris Cook responded to Schools Minister Lord Nash's "grave concerns":
Since the monitoring inspection by Ofsted on 12 September the Governors of Discovery New School (“The Academy”) took the decision to suspend the Headteacher [...] pending an investigation as it is clear that trust and confidence may have been lost.
I would reflect that in the past eight weeks a real sea change in how the school perceives itself has taken place. I am pleased therefore to present to you a Further Action Statement which we believe properly addresses all the points raised by Ofsted.
The sudden demise of the Discovery New School is likely to undermine confidence in Education Secretary Michael Gove's flagship programme.
Parents and governors at the Discovery New School in Crawley have expressed their dismay after it became the first free school to be closed.