A trust which operates a North East secondary school has been warned that they must improve or their funding may be terminated.
Northern Leaders Trust operates Kenton School in the Kenton area of Newcastle. During the last three Ofsted reports the school has received a rating of 'Requires Improvement'.
The trust has now been handed a Termination Warning Notice (TWN) by the Department for Education (DfE). The notice is handed to schools judged less than Good in their two most recent Ofsted inspections.
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In the letter, the DfE say they are currently "not satisfied" that the trust can deliver rapid and sustained improvements at Kenton School. They have ordered them to carry out a number of actions, which include providing termly updates on their progress.
If they fail to meet any of the actions, the department will consider whether to terminate the funding agreement in order to transfer the academy to an alternative trust.
The trust is understood to have responded to the notice and has agreed to the actions set out in the notice. The last three Ofsted inspections were carried out at Kenton School on September 27, 2016, February 26, 2019 and September 13, 2022.
Northern Leaders Trust said Kenton School meets the definition of a "coasting school" due to a third consecutive 'Requires Improvement' (RI) judgement from Ofsted. As a result, they have been issued with a TWN.
A spokesperson for the trust said: "The TWN enables Kenton School to access up to 10 days support from another Trust. The Trustees and CEO have worked closely with the Regional Director’s team to identify a Trust that can offer this support.
"Kenton School and Northern Leaders Trust seek opportunities to collaborate with others and this is another opportunity to do this."
The trust said their improvement journey was recognised by Ofsted in the most recent inspection in September 2022, and subsequently acknowledged by the HMCI Amanda Spielman, in a letter which they received on December 19 last year.
The spokesperson said: "In it, she said 'although your school was judged to require improvement overall, I was pleased to see that leadership and management were judged to be good.
"It is pleasing to read in the report about the positive impact that strengthened leadership is having across the school. I am particularly pleased to note that the provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities was recognised as a strength.
"Furthermore, it is encouraging that leaders are ambitious for their pupils and want them to achieve well. It is also good to know that work focusing on the curriculum is being prioritised.'
"Recent communication from the DfE acknowledges the further improvements made since the inspection in September and leaders are determined to continue to demonstrate to the Regional Director that we are a strong Trust."
The trust also said Ofsted has recognised that the leadership and management of the school are GOOD - for the first time since 2012.
The spokesperson added: "School improvement starts with good leadership, and for the first time since 2012, Ofsted recognised that the leadership and management of the school are GOOD, and this is the platform the school needs to continue its rapid improvement.
"As always, our focus remains centred on all of our students. The TWN is a process undertaken by the DfE when a third consecutive RI judgement is received, so for us, it does not change any of our plans.
"It is business as usual, as we continue on our improvement journey to ensure that students leave Kenton School with the best possible outcomes and best start in life."
Earlier this year, Chronicle Live reported how the principal of Kenton School had resigned for "personal reasons" after less than a month in the job.
Jason Holt was announced as the new principal of Kenton School in December last year and Newcastle City Council said he would take up the role at the beginning of 2023.
At the same time, Lee Kirtley was promoted to CEO of Northern Leaders Trust which runs the school in Kenton and Studio West, a specialist Studio School in West Denton. He joined as executive principal and had responsibility for overseeing improvements across both academies.
The trust announced in January that Mr Holt has resigned from the role. They said the experienced teacher has left for "personal reasons" and has been replaced by Moira Green.
