Why Won’tThey Behave?
HUGH SULLIVAN
Ark Alexandra Academy, the biggest secondary school in Hastings, is in the firing line as parents, teachers and local MP Helena Dollimore trade accusations and demands over disciplinary measures being imposed on pupils by its principals.
In 2021 Ofsted reported “behaviour and attitudes” at Ark Alexandra Academy Hastings secondary school as “good” but that the “quality of education…required improvement”. After the arrival of Executive Principal Rhys Spiers in September 2023 and a further inspection in February 2024, these findings were reversed. Behaviour and attitudes were now marked as needing improvement.
Then, led by Mr Spiers, Ark hit national headlines in September when it introduced an outright ban on the use of mobile phones by its pupils. The ban effectively outlawed the carrying of phones not only within the school premises but on journeys to and from school, since there was no lockbox or other deposit system set up to accommodate them during the school day. Some parents applauded, others were appalled and took to social media to say so.
Other disciplinary changes have followed. There have been widespread reports of a substantial ratchet-up in detentions and suspensions of pupils following petty infringements of school rules and etiquette – failure to raise a hand in class, or taking too long to change after PE – are reported as triggering penalties that many parents regard as disproportionate.
THREATS AND ABUSE
Mr Spiers is unapologetic. He describes the school he arrived at 18 months ago as “blighted by disruptive behaviour”. In a forthright open letter issued on 24 January he maintained that teachers were leaving the profession because of threats and abuse from a minority of students and parents. But the new “warm-strict approach” (his words) to discipline, “introduc[ing] rules to ensure our school environment is safe and respectful”, had transformed the school in the last year: “students are now set to achieve strong outcomes”.
The truth of this may depend on which students he is talking about. There’s a suspicion that improved academic results have come, if at all, because less competent pupils are prevented from sitting exams they might fail. And one parent, Katie Ingham, has issued a petition on the Change.org website, calling for an immediate review of Ark’s disciplinary policies and culture both by the school itself and by Ofsted. In it she describes these policies as “extreme and punitive…having a detrimental effect on children’s mental health, undermining their ability to enjoy learning and thrive in a supportive environment”. So far she has garnered over 260 signatures.
Ms Ingham alleges that often neither children nor their parents are given any adequate or transparent reason for the imposition of detentions, and she feels that vulnerable pupils are given no allowance. She questions whether suspensions are being used to “cleanse” the school of those who are less favoured, putting pressure on their parents to remove them. Her petition had garnered 270 votes by the end of last week.
Former borough councillor Claire Carr has also weighed in on Facebook to challenge Mr Spiers directly : “You make this sound like irrational parents who care more about phones than standards are removing their children…In reality, hundreds of desperate parents have taken their children from Ark Alexandra , often after pressure or at the suggestion of the school (off-rolling), due to a culture of bullying, abuse and a profound lack of transparency, or a lack of support. The rules apply only to the pupils but never to the senior leadership who routinely exclude for reasons outside the government guidance.”
She added: “Exclusion appeals are ignored, communication with the school is replied to weeks later at times so as to be deliberately destructive and not find any way forward, and registers are changed after the fact.”
HOME-SCHOOLING
On 8 January, Ms Dollimore raised in the House of Commons the fact that up to 800 children in Hastings are being home-schooled – one in 16 children, equivalent to 27 classrooms – and coupled this with a Facebook post referring to over 120 children being removed from Ark last term alone. She suggested to her parliamentary colleagues that measures contained in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill would give these children “all the support they need to get back into mainstream education”. However, on Facebook Ms Dollimore referred to “many parents who have told me that they feel they have no choice but to withdraw their children because some local schools are failing to address their children’s needs” – particularly those with Special Education Needs (SEND). She singled out Ark Alexandra Academy, where last term 123 pupils (almost 10% of the total number) were excluded.
Mr Spiers remains unmoved. “Needless to say, we are incredibly proud of the work we are doing at Ark, “ he told HIP, “and I am confident that this will finally improve standards of secondary education in Hastings.
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The proof will be in the impact on school results. Big changes in outcomes require big changes in input, it’s a brave person that solicits this level of ire from the public (and seemingly, local journalists) for the goal of better education for children