Church of England diocese “would rather accept the closure of a village school than see it remain open with a less Christian ethos”

The village of Ripley, in Surrey. By Colin Smith. Credit: wikipedia/creative commons: https://bit.ly/2x93FoT

A Church of England diocese appears to have accepted that a small village school should close, rather than let it continue operating under a multi-academy trust, which, the diocese fears, might downgrade its Christian ethos.

Ripley Church of England primary, a local authority school near Woking in Surrey which is in special measures, had been hoping that an offer from a local MAT, South Farnham Educational Trust, to take it over might see its future safeguarded, at least in the short term.

However, the Diocese of Guildford, which oversees the voluntary controlled school alongside Surrey county council, has rejected the offer. The decision came after the diocese’s own academy chain, the Good Shepherd Trust, turned down the chance to take on the school last year.

The decision has been strongly criticised by a former parish priest who leads “Accord”, a group bringing together religious and non-religious organisations to campaign for more openness in school admissions.

Some 96 per cent of respondents to a local authority consultation on closing the school were against the idea, but the institution, founded in 1840, is set to close in any case.

The detailed position

All schools which fail an Ofsted inspection are now legally required to be turned into academies, so the fact that there is no multi-academy trust in a position to take over Ripley – which has lost many pupils in recent months- means the local authority, Surrey, is now proposing that it close.

Asked by this website about the implication of the situation – that it appeared the diocese would rather see the school close than lose its religious ethos, the Diocese of Guildford responded with a statement from Alex Tear, its director of education.

This said: “The diocese takes its responsibility for the quality of education within our church schools very seriously and almost 90 per cent of them are graded good or outstanding by Ofsted.

 “The decision by the local authority to propose the closure of this school has not been taken lightly or without careful consideration of the specific circumstances related to this school.

 “In May 2017, Ripley Church of England primary school was placed in special measures by Ofsted and despite significant external support is failing to provide the quality of education that children deserve.

 “We were approached by the Department for Education (DfE) to sponsor the school through The Good Shepherd Trust (GST). Having reviewed the position of the school, including numbers of pupils on roll (currently 38) and the availability of surplus primary places within other neighbouring local schools, GST declined to sponsor the school due to its unviability.”

The statement then appeared to confirm that the alternative offer, from South Farnham, was rejected as a result of concerns about the latter’s ability to protect its Christian ethos.

 The statement added: “In line with the national Memorandum of Understanding between the DfE and the National Society on behalf of the Church of England, we have worked closely with the Regional Schools Commissioner (RSC) and the Local Authority to consider all the options for the school including a proposal by the South Farnham Educational Trust (SFET).

 “SFET expressed an interest in sponsoring the school. However, we rejected the offer as the Diocesan Board of Education had no confidence in SFET’s proposals to safeguard the religious character of the school or that it understood how to maintain and develop the Christian ethos of the school.”

The statement then appeared to accept that the school would close. It said: “We recognise that for parents and the local community, the decision to consult on the closure of the school is extremely disappointing. However, the diocese has a responsibility to consider the long term future of its church schools, especially when they become unviable because a school is significantly under subscribed.”

In response, the Reverend Stephen Terry, chair of the Accord Coalition for Inclusive Education, said: “Ripley primary school’s local residents are entitled to ask whether they are to lose a valued educational setting because of some church education officials being averse to wider and secular society.

“If church schools really are there to serve local communities, then diocesan officials should be flexible and explore all avenues to ensure Ripley primary can stay open, rather than allow it to close and deny a village its school.”

The South Farnham Trust is currently working with another school in the area St Mary’s CofE infants, through an “associate membership” arrangement rather than academy sponsorship, which reportedly allows St Mary’s to “retain its identity and Christian values”.

Catherine Leeson, a former Ripley parent, said that South Farnham had accepted that the school currently only had a very small roll, following the adverse Ofsted inspection and the uncertainty surrounding its future, but that it had been prepared to take it on in any case and build up pupil numbers.

The diocese’s decision, she said, would deprive this village of 1,600 inhabitants of its only school, with a consequent knock-on effect on local businesses and a loss of community services including sports classes for local children which have been offered on the site.

Children from the village would now face travelling 2.1 miles to the nearest school, which would make walking dangerous. This suggested car use would rise as a result.

A report from Surrey County Council setting out the background to the case – and the fact that 417 people or 96 per cent responding to a consultation had been against the closure – states that the requirement to academise the school could be reversed, but only on the agreement of one other person.

This, of course, is the Secretary of State for Education. However, Damian Hinds has not indicated any plans to reverse Ripley’s academy order.