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Al-Madinah free school in Derby labelled 'dysfunctional' by Ofsted | Al-Madinah free school in Derby labelled 'dysfunctional' by Ofsted |
(about 1 hour later) | |
A Muslim free school has been damned by Ofsted inspectors, who have ranked it as inadequate in every category. | A Muslim free school has been damned by Ofsted inspectors, who have ranked it as inadequate in every category. |
An inspection at Derby's Al-Madinah school was brought forward after fears were raised over teaching standards. | An inspection at Derby's Al-Madinah school was brought forward after fears were raised over teaching standards. |
The leaked report says teachers there are inexperienced and have not been provided with proper training and that the school requires special measures. | The leaked report says teachers there are inexperienced and have not been provided with proper training and that the school requires special measures. |
The school said it accepted the report in full and needed to use it to move forward. | |
The inspection had been due to take place by the end of the year but was prioritised following allegations that female teachers were obliged to wear hijabs and pupils were segregated. | |
The school has since written to pupils and staff telling them there is no requirement to cover their hair. | The school has since written to pupils and staff telling them there is no requirement to cover their hair. |
The Department for Education had earlier warned the school faced closure unless discrimination against female staff and pupils stopped. | |
A spokesperson said: "We were already investigating this school before allegations became public. We discussed the problems with Ofsted and it launched an immediate inspection. | |
"We have received a response from the Al-Madinah Education Trust as well as a report on the school from Ofsted. Any decisions made will take into account all the available evidence." | |
Education Minister Lord Nash laid out 17 issues for the school to consider, which included proof that the school's curriculum was broad and balanced. | Education Minister Lord Nash laid out 17 issues for the school to consider, which included proof that the school's curriculum was broad and balanced. |
Cut and paste | |
The Ofsted report found that pupils were given the same work "regardless of their different abilities" and the governing body was "ineffective". | The Ofsted report found that pupils were given the same work "regardless of their different abilities" and the governing body was "ineffective". |
The report said basic systems were not in place, describing the school as being "in chaos". | The report said basic systems were not in place, describing the school as being "in chaos". |
Boys and girls had different lunch sittings but the report said this was due to the small size of the canteen. | Boys and girls had different lunch sittings but the report said this was due to the small size of the canteen. |
Dr Stuart Wilson, the acting head teacher, said there were "significant and serous problems" at the school and accepted some of the lessons were not meeting necessary standards. | |
In one mathematics lesson, described by Ofsted as "insufficiently challenging", pupils spent the majority of their time cutting out and pasting shapes. | |
Dr Wilson said the school, which has 412 pupils aged between four and 16, had a lot of issues to deal with but he insisted it did have a future. | |
"Obviously the report doesn't make pleasant reading for anybody - we don't want to be in this position - we wish we weren't in this position - but what we need to do now is to accept the report in full and use it to move the school forward." | |
'Systemic threat' | |
Shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt said the report exposed the government's free school programme as a "dangerous free-for-all". | Shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt said the report exposed the government's free school programme as a "dangerous free-for-all". |
He said: "Pupils have been failed on every possible measure and parents will want to know how David Cameron and Michael Gove have allowed this to happen." | He said: "Pupils have been failed on every possible measure and parents will want to know how David Cameron and Michael Gove have allowed this to happen." |
He added: "Far from an isolated incident, the failings at this school reveal the systemic threat to education standards under this government. | He added: "Far from an isolated incident, the failings at this school reveal the systemic threat to education standards under this government. |
"David Cameron and Michael Gove can no longer ignore this issue - it is a crisis entirely of their own making." | "David Cameron and Michael Gove can no longer ignore this issue - it is a crisis entirely of their own making." |
The government has been offered the opportunity to respond to Mr Hunt's comments. | |
The report gives the school the lowest ranking - "inadequate" - in every area, prompting the chief inspector of schools Sir Michael Wilshaw to call for it to be placed in special measures. | The report gives the school the lowest ranking - "inadequate" - in every area, prompting the chief inspector of schools Sir Michael Wilshaw to call for it to be placed in special measures. |
This means Ofsted will carry out inspections at the school at short notice to monitor improvements. If poor performance continues the school could be closed. |