Peacehaven Heights: campaigners protest at Lewes county hall over academy plans

Members of the National Education Union at Peacehaven Heights Primary School formed a picket line outside the school, before protesting outside County Hall in Lewes as the first in-person full council meeting took place since Covid-19 restrictions were lifted.

Campaigners are strongly against the school being handed over permanently to the STEP academy trust.

Local governing bodies at Peacehaven Heights Primary School and Telscombe Cliffs Primary School were instructed to explore academy conversion in 2019 to raise standards – but following strike action at both schools, they decided against conversion.

Campaigners formed a picket line at the school today

Interim Executive Boards (IEB) were then imposed at the schools by East Sussex County Council in September that year, with an expectation from the Department for Education to “actively consider a sponsored academy solution”.

A consultation on conversion is now due to take place this autumn.

But campaigners say the IEB has made various decisions without consulting parents - and pupils also recently held protests for a permanent headmaster to be appointed, as the school has been led by five different headmasters over the last five years.

• SEE ALSO: Peacehaven Heights: further strike action over academy plans for primary

Kerry Gilbert, a parent who has two children at Peacehaven Heights, said she feels "incredibly let down" by the IEB.

She said: “They filled in the swimming pool without any discussion with parents, leaving many children now with no access to swimming lessons.

"They have stopped Beach School which was an incredibly important nurture provision at the school for all the children, particularly those with special educational needs like my son.

“It has been apparent from the start that behaviour and attendance statistics are much more important to the IEB than pupils’ mental health and well-being.

“I want a local governing body to be put back in place as soon as possible so the community can decide what happens to our school, rather than decisions being forced on us by an IEB, whose chairperson has never even visited the school.”

East Sussex County Council has said the current chairwoman of the IEB, who took up the role in November last year, has not visited the school yet because "she has been observing the government guidance and the school’s risk assessment in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic".

• READ MORE: Pupils protest at Peacehaven Heights Primary School

A spokeswoman previously told The Argus a final decision on academy status will be made by the whole IEB.

She said: "The IEB was put in place following concerns the local authority had about children’s outcomes at the school and the capacity of the governing board to secure sufficient improvement.

“Improving outcomes for children at Peacehaven Heights and securing greater stability for the school are paramount to the IEB.

"The IEB has taken the decision that the best way to bring about the rapid improvement needed was to pursue an academy solution.

"The boards will not hold a consultation until all the current Covid-19 lockdown requirements are removed so that everyone is reassured it is a meaningful consultation."

Pupils, parents and staff took to the streets earlier this month to protest against academy plans

Speaking about today's protest, Craig Arden, National Education Union Regional Officer, said: “Unfortunately, we were not given any assurances today that East Sussex County Council intend to re-instate local governing bodies to decide the future of the schools in Peacehaven at this time.

“Peacehaven recently elected two new councillors who stood on a pledge of fighting to keep the schools in Peacehaven as community schools, and the NEU will continue to campaign with parents to ensure they retain local democratic accountability over their schools."

Councillor Chris Collier, newly elected county councillor for Peacehaven, said: “I’m disappointed staff have been driven to a second day of strike action and I am calling on East Sussex County Council to put a local governing body back in place.

"Any consultation can then be carried out by them in a transparent way that puts the best interests of the pupils first, rather than this headlong nose-dive into forced academisation."