Have you ever met someone who has restored your faith? I had this very experience when I met the Head Teacher at the new David Young Academy School in Gipton, Ros McMullen.
Years back the east side of Roundhay and Gipton were served by Brain Wood High School and Agnes Stewart High which churned out children with low levels of academic achievement. Poor discipline, standards and management meant that the pupils had a low chance of achieving their potential.
With the closing of the two schools in 2006, came the opening of the David Young Academy School on the outskirts of Gipton, part funded by the Diocese of Leeds and Ripon but open to all. The recent Ofsted inspection showed that academic achievement had improved over the predecessor schools and noted that three quarters of students got 5 GCSEs at A-G, a notable improvement.
“Lobley – why are you so taken with this school?” I hear you ask. Well, seeing is believing. This is a school from which over 90% of the kids come from the poorest 3% of the population statistically. Detractors will tell you that this Academy school discriminates in its access policy. Nonsense. In fact it uses results of the ‘Fair Banding’ aptitude test and proportionally takes a cross-section of pupils matching the Leeds average. The test does not take into account the ability to read or speak English – so poor primary schooling will not drag kids down. Anyone who suggests this discriminates against local pupils should bear in mind that unlike many other schools 95% of the kids come from within a mile of the school and within the cleverest banding of the intake you’ll find pupils from the very poorest areas of the city.
Why am I so impressed with the school?
Discipline – Pupils must wear smart uniforms and this is rigorously enforced. Any child hitting a teacher or bringing a knife into school is immediately expelled – no listening to sob stories and undermining the Head by allowing a violent pupil back in.
Respect - When the Head Teacher enters the room the kids stand in silence behind their desks until told to sit down – they know their boundaries and seem happy for it. They love the Head. All teachers set an example in suits.
Diet – On the morning I visited 600 of the 1000 pupils had eaten porridge for breakfast – Porridge! Nobody has ever managed to get me to eat the stuff but here are 1000 pupils on either porridge or other healthy options. As all pupils must eat breakfast at the school, the worst parents no longer give them £1 to spend at Greggs bakers, which used to go on black market cigarettes and a can of pop. Pupils also have to have lunch meaning that even in the cases where the parents starve their kids on an evening, they have two healthy meals a day. They even eat ratatouille now for goodness sake! As a consequence, behaviour is better and the kids can concentrate in class. It was sad to hear that after the summer break the school always runs out of food, meaning many kids have been all but starved whilst they were off. Many kids don’t want to leave the school on a night, it’s heartbreaking.
Individuality – No, not some politically correct nonsense about celebrating individuality, this is about helping kids who need special help. If the only clothes a student has is the school uniform on their back, one of the ‘Team Leaders’ will sensitively help them to have access to a shower and a clean shirt so they can hold their head up high.
Independence – from Education Leeds. This means Ros sets her own salaries and is able to pay performance related bonuses. Staff voted against Union negotiation on hours and pay, are flexible and are rewarded for it. Ros is free from interference and simply gets the money direct to invest in the pupils’ education. It works.
Ethos – The school is open to all religions and none, but is run on a Christian ethos without preaching or dogma. One could mistake it for a traditional private school when walking around. It’s a very friendly place and very ordered.
Responsibility – Every child who is caught misbehaving is asked to state at what point their behaviour triggered the problem. They talk it through and realising their error are made to put the situation right themselves.
Stability – In many failing inner city schools, teachers historically used these as a training ground to then step up to a better performing school where they can be part of a success story, and who can blame them? Now, in a school in one of the poorest catchment areas in England, teachers want to stay and be part of the success.
Environment – The school is in a lovely new building and the kids respect it. Two years on it shows no sign of needing even slight maintenance. However, Ros believes the nice building is the icing on the cake and that schools can succeed in the same way without a brand new building.
Aspiration – Pupils are told clearly that no one will leave the school with a desire to ‘go on the dole’. They are rewarded and recognised for good work
This school demonstrates how we need to stop patronising kids from ‘poor backgrounds’ and give them a school environment in which they can flourish. This does not just mean a new building. The removal of interference by the education authority works very well indeed allowing a Head to inspire and retain staff. Discipline and diet are crucial in getting kids the education they deserve. They need boundaries and discipline but they also need inspiring, In a couple of years when pupils have been schooled at David Young for more of their academic life, I am confident we’ll see some exceptional academic results for an area where children are all too easily written off.
I firmly believe, more than any other initiative of the last 15 years, these schools are the key to ending a downward spiral of welfare dependency and failure in inner city areas. It will be many years before it becomes apparent, but giving these kids aspiration missing in many of their parents will be good for the individual and society as a whole.
I take my hat off to Ros McMullen and her team of dedicated staff. They are an inspiration.
Promoted by Ted Stafford on behalf of Matthew Lobley for North East Leeds both at Enterprise House
249 Low Lane
Horsforth
Leeds
LS16 5NY
Tel: 0113 2945074
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