From three-tier to two-tier by Josie Milton, Executive Head Teacher at Titchmarsh and Warmington Primary Schools
On the 11 November 2014, after many months of deliberation, lobbying and consultation, it was announced that East Northamptonshire is going to join the vast majority of local authorities by closing its middle schools and moving to a two-tier education system.
At its peak, the number of middle schools in England was in excess of 1,400 but with the closure of The King John in Thrapston, and Oundle Middle School, there will be just 161 still offering education for 9-13 year olds. The arguments for and against a two or threetier system are many and varied, and it is difficult to come to any definitive conclusions. What is widely acknowledged is that strong leadership from the senior management team leads to good outcomes for pupils. That, rather than any decision on organisational structure across age groups is the defining quality required of all schools to become outstanding.
In moving to a two-tier system, Northamptonshire County Council has decided to invest and support the rural and town primary schools, all of which are rated either good or outstanding by Ofsted, whilst The King John, Oundle Middle, and Prince William are currently ‘requiring improvement’.
The biggest challenge is to ensure that in the transition from a three-tier system to a two-tier is delivered with no impact on the education of children. Significant investment has been assured for building work and curriculum development in primary schools to ensure that all are fully prepared for the change. It is vital that this pledge by Northamptonshire County Council is honoured in full.
For parents with children already in the school system, the hope is that the changes will result in an improvement in the education currently offered from years five through to eleven. For parents with children entering primary education over the next couple of years, they should be encouraged that strong schools are being given the opportunity to extend their teaching through the entire key stage two period. With final decisions on where to send reception year children required by 15th January, parents should be asking questions about how the new primary schools will be gearing up for the additional two years they will now be responsible for. I am confident you will be impressed by the responses - the primary schools are taking the opportunity to think creatively and are definitely rising to the challenge.
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