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Latest News on Academy Status:
I am sure that parents will be interested to hear the latest news regarding our application to become an Academy school from 1st August.
The Minister issued an Academy Order for us during the Easter break.....this is good news as it means that all being well we will become an Academy. Of course consultation continues including a meeting with local community members on Thursday 5th May.We also intend offering parents another opportunity to hear of governor decisions in relation to the Academy at Oldbury College of Sport in the not too distant future. Parents are reminded that if they have any concerns or questions then they should feel free to contact the school at any point.
The Local Authority and ourselves are now working together to complete all of the legal work necessary to convert.It is very complicated but progress is being made on transferring the land to the school on a lease and ensuring staff are aware of the plans for the Academy and what their new employer intends to do to ensure a good education for you and our future students.
The decision as to whether to change the name of the school will be made by governors on the 9th May.The preferences expressed by stakeholders were as follows:
Pupils - A majority 31% (431 students) voted for Oldbury Academy. 5% (71 students) voted for Oldbury College of Sport Academy & Sixth Form. 64% (908 students) gave a variety of other suggestions (over 150 other suggestions in total).
Staff - 65% (64 people) of staff chose Oldbury Academy. 8% chose Oldbury College of Sport Academy & Sixth Form. 27% gave a variety of other suggestions.
Parent - 45% (22 parents) voted for Oldbury Academy. 18% voted for Oldbury College of Sport Academy & Sixth Form. 37% gave a variety of alternative suggestions.
Meetings with staff have continued to take place and further Academy questions from staff and unions have, I hope, been fully answered. I have been asked as to whether all staff support the conversion and my answer is that this is not the case.A harder question to answer has been whether a majority of staff support conversion and I suspect that this is the case although I cannot be certain. I do know that some staff are extremely keen to pursue conversion and many others are taking a positive interest in developments.
So how are the unions reacting to all of this? I am aware that some of the unions are considering industrial action and possible striking although ballot results have not been declared. As ever we shall continue to listen to their views and act upon what is in the interests of the school. The fundamental differences in approach between what the unions want and what governors may want however needs to be reconciled. The unions openly state that their priority is their members and not students whilst governors have a number of priorities.
Remember if you do have any thoughts or questions on these matters or others then feel free to contact Senior staff or myself
Mr. J. Martin
Executive Headteacher
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