Pupils listen in class at their first day at Oakbank School
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First day at Oakbank free school
By Sally BryantSeptember 13, 2012
The first day of term was a momentous occasion in Spencers Wood as the register was taken at a new school.
Three forms of Year Seven pupils took the huge step up to big school – and they are going to be trailblazers at Oakbank.
The free school on the former Ryeish Green site in Hyde End Lane opened with just the 61 11-year-olds on Wednesday and they will be ‘growing’ the school over the next five years to its capacity of 560.
And the new school’s motto of ‘Challenge, Commitment and Community’ has been chosen to set them on the right path.
Last Wednesday, the principal Nick Dorey was certain a mighty oak was going to grow from the school’s ‘acorn’ beginnings.
Mr Dorey, who has been teaching for more than 30 years and has headed 15 schools, said: “We had a lovely day, it was very special.
“We had an opening assembly and a lot of induction in the morning like finding your way around, timetables and routines and sorting out lockers.
“The aim now is to get the school community flourishing, which is what school is all about, and get the young people settled into their work and making as much progress as possible.”
Ryeish Green School closed in July 2010 on a tide of controversy, with Wokingham Borough Council blaming a fall in numbers.
Berkshire’s first free secondary school, which will not be run by the local authority, is the result of a successful bid by the West of Wokingham Parent Group (WoWPG) to the Department of Education.
The group was backed by CfBT Educational Trust, the Reading-based educational charity.
Oakbank is funded directly from central Government and its governing body includes the CfBT, staff and parents.
It has been launched with 12 teaching and non-teaching staff.
Oakbank pupils, who are wearing grey and green with house colours in their ties, are set to achieve their potential inspired by great names.
The school’s houses are Curie, Hillary and Mandela and Mr Dorey said they had chosen famous people who had epitomised the qualities of Oakbank’s new motto.
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Most recent user comments 8 of 8
I always get uneasy with the concept of 'choice', though; like when we hear people on TV saying that 'what people want from their hospitals/schools etc. is choice' - no, we want good services available locally. I take your point, but in my opinion if parents "want better (or more local) schooling than their LEA can offer", than the LEA is doing something wrong, and it should be up to local and national government to ensure that all children have access to good local schooling - it feels to me like the response to the need for more/better schools has been 'well set some up yourselves, then'.
14/09/2012 at 11:56 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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Free Schools have only been in existence for one year so it is impossible yet to say whether they are a good or bad thing. I am a firm believer that a school is only as good as the teachers and parents who run it regardless of its school type.
When I asked “why would they…” [employ unqualified teachers], I am asking what’s in it for them (the school) other than saving a few quid, and what would be the point in that if the teaching was poor, the school failed and parents didn’t want to send their children there? The school wouldn’t last five minutes.
I interpret ‘free’ to mean self-determining, free to govern themselves, free of LEA bureaucracy, bias and mismanagement. They are alos 'free' of fees. The concept of Free Schools is to give parents greater choice; parents who want better (or more local) schooling than their LEA can offer. Sounds fine in principle.
If it does take some funding away from the LEA, who is to say it is not being better spent? There are means of measuring quality and success like Key Stage assessments and Ofsted inspections. The ultimate judge of whether Free Schools work or not will be the parents – it’s as black and white as that.
I suspect that some will succeed, others fail – nothing’s perfect. Let’s hope Oakbank is a success story for the sake of our children.
14/09/2012 at 10:18 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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May never happen, and I've no reason to believe it will happen in this case. But my comment was in response to your hypothetical question - "Maybe they can employ unqualified teachers, but why would they" - and I stand by the answer.
What does it mean that it's 'free' - it's free of rules, laws, inspections etc.? Or do they have to follow all the same rules? What do we as citizens of the UK get by reducing the obligation of local authorities to provide schools for our children and letting the private sector in to a much greater degree? I see how the private sector can win, I see how the responsibilities of our elected representatives is reduced, but what are the benefits to us?
13/09/2012 at 16:21 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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Free schools, like independent schools, have the major task of attracting applicants, but unlike independent schools they’re FREE – the clue’s in the name
13/09/2012 at 15:32 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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13/09/2012 at 14:29 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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"Maybe they can employ unqualified teachers, but why would they" - because it's cheaper.
I hope the school is successful and the children happy and well-educated. I am very uneasy about private business being introduced to another part of the country's infrastructure and basic needs, though. The blue team does love to privatise, doesn't it?
13/09/2012 at 14:29 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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As Free Schools have complete autonomy, you may well find they pay above average wages as they aim to attract the best teachers.
I have not read or heard they do not employ teachers with union affiliation – not sure where you have got that from.
Maybe they can employ unqualified teachers, but why would they, unless they had very reason to, like the employee had other assets / skills to offer?
You make some very strange points against a school that has been open less than a week.
I say give Oakbank a chance to prove itself. If it’s any good, the winners will be local kids and their parents.
13/09/2012 at 12:13 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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13/09/2012 at 10:31 Offensive or Inappropriate?
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