Trojan Horse-linked Oldknow Academy not improving enough, warn Ofsted

Inspectors say three out of four of the scandal hit schools visited are improving

A school at the centre of the Trojan Horse scandal is not doing enough to turn itself around, education watchdogs have revealed.

Ofsted has published its latest monitoring inspections of four of the five schools involved in a plot by hard-line Muslims to take over their governing bodies.

Three were said to be making “reasonable progress” but Oldknow Academy in Small Heath was criticised for not improving enough since it was put in special measures in April.

SATs results for Year 6 pupils this year showed abilities had “deteriorated” from last year, with standards in writing particularly slipping.

And head teacher Bhupinder Kondalhas “struggled to get the academy back on track”, read the report.

She had previously led the school to an ‘outstanding’ rating in January 2013 but quit 12 months later - claiming she was driven out by Trojan Horse plotters.

Deputy head Jahangir Akbar became acting head but he was later suspended after a disciplinary investigation, which is still ongoing.

Ms Kondal was re-instated as head of the school in August. But the Ofsted monitoring inspection, carried out last month, revealed despite her “commitment and dedication” there was a “lack of clarity about what needs to be done”.

She was criticised for infrequently visiting lessons and not having a “visible presence”, while inspectors said a “significant concern” was staff absence - with seven teachers missing on the day they visited.

Concerns were also raised over child protection, with the teacher in charge of the issue set to leave and “insufficient plans” in place for a replacment.

Some aspects of the school were praised though, including work to train staff to keep pupils safe from the risks of “radicalisation, extremism, domestic violence and female genital mutilation”.

Meanwhile, Nansen Primary, Saltely School and Golden Hillock - all also placed in special measures in April after being deemed ‘inadequate’ - were said to be taking steps to improve.

However, inspectors revealed that “serious allegations of a child protection nature” at Golden Hillock in Sparkhill were being investigated by authorities at the time they visited on November 25 and 26.

Ofsted revealed that Saltley School, in Bordesley Green, is set to become an academy. It will be sponsored and run by Washwood Heath Academy from April 1.

At Nansen in Saltley, provisional results for 2014 showed that at the end of Key Stage 1, pupils were reaching the standards expected in reading, writing and Maths, while teaching was “improving steadily”.

A spokesman for Park View Educational Trust, which runs Nansen and Golden Hillock, said: “We are encouraged by Ofsted’s latest report and acknowledge how hard our staff are working.”

Sir Mike Tomlinson, appointed as Birmingham’s education commissioner after the Trojan Horse scandal, said: “These reports show further improvements are needed at all the schools but it is important to recognise the huge progress made.

“Important milestones have already been reached and I will continue to work with these schools and Birmingham City Council to ensure we build upon these early signs of success.”

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