Secondary education at Derby’s failing Al-Madinah School will be axed at the end of the summer term.
The shock decision by the Government means that pupils aged 11 to 16 will have to find new secondary schools in the city and there are likely to be staff redundancies.
Schools Minister Lord Nash has made it clear that the secondary section must close or risk losing the whole school.
The primary school will continue.
He told Al-Madinah’s new trustees that the “poor quality of secondary teaching” and “lack of breadth” in the curriculum mean he thinks it would be best if “children in the secondary part of the school continue their education elsewhere from this September”.
Lord Nash said in a letter to new trust chairman Barry Day that he expects the school’s board to develop the primary section of the school.
But he does not rule out the possibility of a secondary section returning to the school at a later date.
Lord Nash said: “I still wish to see the vision of an all-through faith school realised, but I will only agree to this when the trust can demonstrate the provision of primary education is of high quality.”
A damning report by an inspection team from Ofsted – Office for Standards in Education – published in October found the free school “in chaos” “dysfunctional” and “inadequate” and it was placed in special measures.
Schools Minister Lord Nash stepped in to demand an action plan from the trustees but when that proved to be unsatisfactory he demanded the resignations of the founding trustees – Shazia Parveen, Shahban Rehmat and Ziad Amjad - although they did not leave the school until January 31.
At the same time he asked Barry Day, chief executive of the education charity Greenwood Dale Foundation Trust, to take over the school.
Mr Day has indicated that the financial situation at the school would prevent it from joining the Greenwood Dale trust but he has been giving advice and loaning staff to the school since early December.
He has now become chair of the Al-Madinah trust in a personal capacity to further assist the transition phase at the school and has three other trustees to assist him.
Mr Day said: “It is with reluctance we accept the Government’s assessment on the secondary education provided.
“We are absolutely clear that a concerted focus on the primary school will help turn the school around.”
Mr Day said he would work with the Department of Education and Derby City Council to supports parents in finding alternative places for their children.
Parents are due to meet with Mr Day and the rest of the trustees, together with representatives from the Department for Education, on Monday night.