Management at Derby’s failing Muslim free school has said it has “done everything humanly possible” to save it from closing ahead of a Government-imposed deadline.
Time ran out on Friday at midnight for the governors at Al-Madinah School to come up with an action plan that would demonstrate they could turn standards around following a damning inspection last month.
A team from Ofsted – Office for Standards in Education – visited the city’s only free school and said it was “inadequate”, “in chaos” and “dysfunctional”.
Schools Minister Lord Nash gave the school 15 days to come up with the plan including a management structure, high-quality teaching, a well-balanced curriculum, child safety and good governance, or face funding being withdrawn.
Shazia Parveen, chair of the Al-Madinah Education Trust, who has already announced her intention to step down on an unknown date, issued a statement as the midnight deadline approached.
She said: “We believe that we can make Al-Madinah a success story. We continue to believe in the vision on which Al-Madinah was founded and continue to strive for excellence.
“We have worked arduously day and night to meet the deadlines set by Lord Nash. We have done everything humanly possible to respond professionally in a timely manner to prove we are committed, dedicated and want nothing but good for our communities and children we serve.
“We realise the complexity of starting, operating and successfully running our free school requires a lot of expertise, dedication and support to make it a success.”
The Department for Education refused to add anything to a previous comment which acknowledged receipt of information from the school and said “it was being considered”. But it is expected Lord Nash will act swiftly to resolve the school’s future.
In the meantime, Derby North MP Chris Williamson is calling for local authorities to be allowed to monitor all schools in their area – including free schools.
He has written to Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove but has yet to receive a response.
Free schools are answerable directly to the Government and the Office for Standards in Education but have no local accountability at all. They are usually set up by groups, organisations or parents.
Ofsted said that the 412-pupil school “had not been adequately monitored or supported” since it opened in September 2012.
Mr Williamson said: “I am urging the Government to rethink their approach to this and to put in place the measures to ensure there is no repeat of the Al-Madinah debacle elsewhere.”
Al-Madinah hit the headlines after the Derby Telegraph exclusively revealed in September that non-Muslim female teachers were being forced to wear a hijab – an Islamic head covering – a practice ended within a few days by Lord Nash.