ADVENTURE Learning Academy Trust (ALAT) has assured parents of pupils at Altarnun Primary School that the school is making gradual progress, and has invited the community to become more involved in the establishment, writes Rosie Cripps.

Altarnun is one of five primary schools within ALAT, which also includes Fowey River Academy, Liskeard Hillfort Primary School, Gulval School in Penzance and Tywardreath School. The school became an academy on June 1, 2014, through ALAT.

Parents, members of the community, ALAT and school representatives and officers from Cornwall Council were invited to a public meeting, organised by Altarnun Parish Council on Wednesday, February 21 to discuss any concerns or put forward any views about the school’s progress. The event took place at Altarnun Parish Hall, and the room was full.

The parish council chairman, Cllr Craig Dowler, said that the aim of the evening was to ‘broker a constructive dialogue’ with the school and ALAT, and to touch upon any plans, changes and the continuing success of the school.

He said: “Parental concerns have been at the attention of the parish council for about three or four years now, mainly because of the changes made and the inconsistencies at the school. This meeting has been delayed to allow ALAT and the school to build on its Ofsted result and settle. It is also important to know that the parish council has noted the school’s successes with its recent Ofsted inspection, and the energy and enthusiasm put in by the acting headteacher, Simon Danby.

“The parish council is very, very sensitive to the existing feelings running high amongst the past and existing parents of pupils at the primary school. Our intentions are that the parish retains its last remaining school, there is a delivery of an excellent primary facility and that we can provide support to the school and to parents, so that the school is once again the beating heart of the community.”

Mr Danby, who is also a member of the board of trustees of ALAT, was at the meeting, and also in attendance was Mr Tim Cook, headteacher of Liskeard Hillfort Primary School, and ALAT’s regional executive principal for the South West, Paul Baker. Cornwall Councillor for Altarnun, Adrian Parsons, and Tim Osborne, Cornwall Council cabinet member for education were also present.

The school had its most recent Ofsted inspection in September of 2017. It was rated ‘requires improvement’ in all categories, including overall effectiveness, leadership and management, quality of teaching, learning and assessment, personal development, behaviour and welfare, outcomes for pupils and Early Years provision. Among the comments made by the inspector was that the changes in staffing ‘have slowed the rate of improvement in the academy’, with slow progress in pupils’ learning and subject leadership roles ‘not well established’ also being of concern.

However, the inspector also noted the school’s strengths, which included acting head, Mr Danby, who had ‘quickly gained the respect and confidence of pupils, parents and staff’, leaders’ self-evaluation being accurate and reliable, and pupils being courteous, kind and respectful individuals.

Mr Baker addressed the meeting, stating that he has been involved with ALAT for four years and is responsible for the five schools in Cornwall that are academies within the trust. He said: “I understand the school improvement journey and know that this particular journey has been difficult and hugely challenging for the community of Altarnun. However, I too share your passion for the school.”

The meeting heard that 94% of parents said they thought their children were being well taught at Altarnun, and 77% would recommend this primary school. Attendance has also ‘greatly improved, and is well above the national average’.

He explained that with rigorous recruitment in December 2017, the school has welcomed new staff including Mrs Harrison, who is part of the parish herself, and was described as being ‘best placed for the improvement journey at Altarnun’.

The introduction of Mr Danby to the school has ‘accelerated’ support and the meeting also heard that the trust has been able to secure staff training and targeted support. Mr Baker continued to commend the improvements made at Altarnun, with new touch-screen technology enhancing education and the emotional wellbeing of pupils being supported.

He said: “Our vision is that every child exceeds way beyond their potential and is bound by their imagination. We want every child to leave school with a love for learning so that they can apply this to their secondary education.”

With Ofsted recognising that the school is ‘improving’, Mr Baker added: “We really hope Altarnun becomes a great school once again and becomes an essential clog in the wheel of the community.”

Members of the public were then invited to ask questions. A former vice-chair of Altarnun Primary School’s governors said: “Why has it taken three and a half years for ALAT to pull its finger out? I didn’t want to take my child out of Altarnun — I loved the school and I loved the village. But it all changed when ALAT arrived. You talk about improvement — where was it when my son was at the school?

“We were told my son was a year ahead, and then we’re told he’s way behind — six months behind — with ALAT. The school needs to keep going, we have to keep the school open. You can paint a great picture, but the school does need improvement. Why has it taken three years?”

In response, Mr Baker said: “We have been supporting Altarnun for a significant amount of time. I agree that it’s vital to keep the school going for the community. I’ve spent a lot of time with Simon (Danby) and the community, so I feel like I know the school really well.

“I do see a lot of positive change and a lot of drive to see the school succeed. Ofsted does identify that the school ‘requires improvement’ — there’s no getting away from that. But it does identify where improvement has been made. Improvements are taking place, the progress is there, it’s clear to see.”

Chrissie Wakely, manager of Altarnun Pre-school, said that some of the teaching in the past was at fault, but that people should now look forward instead of dwelling on the bad times. She said: “It has frustrated me, but we need to keep the pre-school going. I think the school has a nice environment now — the parents are friendly, the teachers are friendly, the children are well-behaved.

“I also think more of the local community need to come and get involved, but they don’t and that’s the sad thing about it. People are up there, working hard — working through half terms and weekends. It’s not like we leave at 3.30pm. We need to look at the positives and we need to move on.”

However, a parent nearby said: “I took my daughter away in 2016, and children are still leaving. We’re now years from this — why has it taken so long?”

Another gentleman said: “How can you expect a good parent-teacher relationship? It speaks high volumes about the organisation — people don’t want to stay there, people want to move on.”

One man, also a former governor with children at Altarnun, said: “It’s not been easy. There have been times where our family has considered moving our children, and there have been times where it’s been grounded. However, the change has come. My children enjoy going to school.

“I think it’s really important to say that it’s always been ‘want to do well’ with ALAT, which was very poorly delivered at the start. Personally, I hope the stability is there. The new principal is part of the community, and I hope that will help bring everyone together. We have a school that is a great facility — my children have developed there, perhaps not as well as they would have in another school, but they have done well. It’s sad that it’s too late for some, but the school didn’t change overnight and Ofsted didn’t happen overnight.

“Looking back, the people there weren’t good enough to do the job, but they are now.”

Mr Danby addressed the room and said: “The staff at Altarnun are working incredibly hard to provide a good level of education to the children. Whilst we might have lost some children, there’s no reason why they won’t come back. The support from the community has been so positive, so helpful, and the drive team is going to have a massive impact on the school — we’ve got so many strengths in so many areas. We want to have the best people to help drive the school forward.”

Cllr Dowler suggested that involving the community with the school would be highly beneficial. He said: “Hopefully now things are progressing at the school. I think things are gently moving, but perhaps if the school have the odd coffee morning and involve the parents a bit more and talk to the parents.”

In response, Mr Baker said: “There are regular opportunities for parents to come into the school. It’s a community school — I mean, we can’t hold coffee mornings every morning, but for children to have this as part of their curriculum maybe, that could be a very exciting opportunity. We would welcome you with open arms to enjoy listening to the children read, write and learn. We can do this by engaging with the community.”

Coming back to governance, it was mentioned that around £35,000 to £40,000 had been ‘ringfenced’ to provide a hall for the school, allowing children to play sports, hold assemblies and further learning events. It was asked if this money had still been set aside for this purpose, or if it had gone to ALAT. Mr Baker said that ‘reserves are reserves of the school’, and that the money was not ALAT’s money.

The meeting heard from Cornwall Council’s head of school effectiveness and education, Tim Osborne. He explained that his role was responsible for looking after safeguarding, music hubs, outdoor education, governance and employability. In his role, Mr Osborne works closely with the regional schools commissioner and Ofsted.

He said: “The future is not with the teachers, it rests in the hands of the parents who send their children to the school. You’ve got to leave here with you having enough trust in the people looking after the school now, and they’re not going away.

“It’s a two-way street. A school in the community, like your community, it is unique, and everyone has the same drive to keep it going. You’ve got to be more open and welcoming.”

He then addressed Mr Baker and Mr Danby, saying to put a strong parents’ forum together to allow members of the community to be more involved with the school. “If you don’t talk to the school at the time, there’s no chance for them to do anything about it (a problem),” he continued.

“We’ve had schools go down as much as 19 children in Cornwall. If it gets below 19, it gets to an unsustainable position — but it happens, numbers go up. The only way they will go up is if the parents know it’s a good place to go, and the school needs to communicate with the parents.

“When you leave this evening, draw a line in the sand. The school has had hard times, but has got to move on or else there will be no room for moving forward. The leap of faith for you is to believe and trust in these people.”

Bringing the discussion to a close, Cllr Dowler added: “As a community, we’ve got to try and become more involved and hopefully things will improve. Hopefully we’ve all realised a few things here tonight.”

He asked any parents with future or ongoing concerns to take them to the school, in the hope that the problem will be dealt with swiftly, or to attend any future parish council meetings to voice concerns.