Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth

Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth (formerly Bishopsgarth School) is a comprehensive secondary school with academy status in the Bishopsgarth area of Stockton on Tees, England. It has a mixed intake of both boys and girls, ages 11–16, and had 537 pupils on roll in January 2017.[1]

Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth
Address
Harrowgate Lane, Stockton-on-Tees , County Durham , TS19 8TF England
Coordinates	54.5811°N 1.3649°W / 54.5811; -1.3649
Information
Type	Academy
Motto	"Students First"
Local authority	Stockton-on-Tees
Trust	Outward Academies Trust
Department for Education URN	143146 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Chair of Governors	Ralph Pickles
Chief Executive Officer	Martyn Oliver
Principal	Sheriden Hutchinson-Jones
Gender	Mixed
Age	11 to 16
Enrolment	537 as of January 2017
Capacity	602
Houses	Africa, Asia, Americas, Australasia and Europe
Colour(s)	Purple and gold
Website	bishopsgarth.outwood.com
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The school is operated by Outwood Grange Academies Trust, and the current principal is Sheriden Hutchinson-Jones.[1] Ralph Pickles is the current chair of governors.[2]

History

Bishopsgarth School was a community school operated by the local education authority.[3]

Following an inspection in January 2016, Ofsted rated Bishopsgarth School as "requires improvement" in all areas.[4] In June, the school began working with support from Outwood Grange Academies Trust to tackle low-level disruptive behaviour. On the first day of new "no-nonsense" rules coming into force, 15 pupils received fixed-term exclusions for various misdemeanours.[5]

In November 2016 the school converted to academy status, joining Outwood Grange Academies Trust, and changed its name to Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth.[1]

In January 2019, Ofsted published its first inspection report of the academy since its conversion to Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth. [6]

Academics

This an 11-16 academy rated good by Ofsted;[6] a medium-sized school with that says it big plans for the future. Ofsted noted in the report that it is ‘being rapidly transformed through the highly effective actions of leaders and the trust.’ it is experimenting with a vertical curriculum centering on a two-year Key Stage 3 and a three-year Key Stage 4, that personalises learning. It supports fast-tracking and workshops to provide accelerated routes for the most ambitious students, while giving all the time they need to succeed through the extended Key Stage 4.[7]

Years 7, 8

During Years 7 and 8, students study a 'broad and balanced curriculum' which includes English, maths and science as core subjects, with a range of expressive arts subjects, geography, history, a PSRE programme that include religious education, computer science, technology, a modern foreign language and physical education. This fulfills the National Curriculum requirement.[8]

Years 9, 10, and 11

Students will start studying GCSE or equivalent courses in Year 9. These will include English (including English Literature), mathematics and science (which includes physics, chemistry and biology). Students will also study physical education and the Life PSRE programme. In addition, after much discussion students embark on their individualised Guided Pathway. They will be directed into various suitable options. These courses each lead to qualifications a student will need for their future career choices. [8]

From the three option columns they must choose one subject from this list: History (GCSE), Geography (GCSE), German (GCSE). Then two from : WJEC Hospitality and Catering (GCSE), OCR Child Development (Cambridge National), BTEC Tech Award in Business and Enterprise, BTEC Tech Award in Sport, Activity and Fitness.[8] [9]

Controversies

Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth excluded 34% of its pupils on fixed-term exclusions in 2017–2018, the second highest figure in the country, only to be beaten by Outwood Academy Ormesby who excluded 41%. [10]

In 2019 former teachers at the school reported a practice of intimidating 'flattening the grass assemblies',[lower-alpha 1] which the trust denied.[10]

Schoolsweek described what happened at a flattening the grass assembly at Outwood Academy City Fields. They quoted a teacher.

“I’ve never seen anything like it. They were shouting in the faces of any children that were slouching. “Those first assemblies were very, very harsh… The atmosphere was poisonous… The people that were in there were just downright nasty towards the pupils.”

[12] Again the trust denied the accusation.

After being threatened with a court action, the Trust is reviewing its use of consequence rooms and isolation booths in its 31 schools. Here pupils were required to sit in silence in isolation for six hours a day while receiving no teacher input. The Trust had issued 31,000 of these punishment orders to pupils across 14 schools in the trust in the 2017–18 academic year. 1,400 went to children receiving free school meals and 90 to children with education health and care (EHC) plans.[13]

Notes

1. When a school is rebrokered from a failing trust into Outwood Grange Academies Trust (OGAT), there is a behaviour ethos-setting exercise called “flattening the grass” rolling assemblies. Here the Trust executives visit the school, en masse, to stand around the edge of the assembly hall whilst the local headteacher strongly outlines, to year each group OGAT's expectations of students’ behaviour. It is fixed so individual students are preselected to be singled out to be humiliated in front of their yeargroup; until they break down in tears. If the head of school is not forceful enough, the Trust CEO walks forward and takes over. The students are the “grass” which is “flattened” by the experience.[11]

References

1. "Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth - GOV.UK". get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
2. "Academy Council". bishopsgarth.outwood.com. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
3. "Bishopsgarth School". EduBase. Department for Education. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
4. "Bishopsgarth School" (PDF). Ofsted. 24 February 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
5. Blackburn, Mike (2016-06-17). "Tough discipline academy to take over struggling Stockton school". gazettelive. Retrieved 2017-07-12.
6. "Ofsted Report 2019". Ofsted. This article contains quotations from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright
7. "Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth - Tes Jobs". www.tes.com. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
8. "Curriculum Overview - Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth". www.bishopsgarth.outwood.com. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
9. "Guided Pathways booklet 2019". www.bishopsgarth.outwood.com. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
10. Perraudin, Frances (16 March 2019). "Academy trust accused of using assemblies to intimidate students". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
11. Tomsett, John (3 February 2019). "This much I know about…behaviour management, "flattening the grass" and Mary Myatt". johntomsett. self. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
12. Dickens, John (14 February 2019). "'Flattening the grass': what's really going on?". Schools Week. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
13. Perraudin, Frances (30 January 2019). "Legal action prompts academy to consider isolation unit criticisms". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 March 2019.

External links

• Official website