A school is considering breaking away from its local authority in a bid to access more funding and secure its “future success”.

West Blatchington Primary School in Hove will launch a formal consultation on whether to join The Pioneer Academy Trust (TPA), a group of 15 primary, infant and junior schools across the South East.

The decision comes after the school’s governing body said it considered all viable options including joining a federation or maintaining the status quo as a local authority-run council school, alongside the option of joining an academy trust that works in the area.

Academy schools receive funding from the government directly, are run by academy trusts and have more autonomy than council-run schools.

The school said 78 per cent of the TPA schools that have been inspected are good or better (compared with 22 per cent when they joined the trust) and 89 per cent of TPA schools that have been inspected so far have maintained or improved their Ofsted outcome.

TPA invests around £1m across all its academies every year and also works with local authorities to help provide further funding.

Educational initiatives include TPA’s cultural capital programme – TPA has dedicated £100,000 across the trust to this so that numerous educational trips can go ahead, free of charge to pupils.

West Blatchington said it would benefit “significantly” from TPA funding for capital and educational improvements at the school, including £100,000 by the end of the first year of conversion.

The school wants to continue to develop its autistic spectrum condition facility. 

School leaders want the facility to be a recognised city-wide and regional centre of excellence, providing high quality specialist education for primary aged children in a mainstream school who have moderate special educational needs and disabilities and a diagnosis of autism.

A school spokesman said: “It is clear to TPA that further capital investment is required for the ASC facility to create a sensory room and a safe soft playroom, and TPA intends to have this installed in the next few years.”

Simon Sharron and Matt Parsons, who co-chair the school's governors, said: “We are a strong school and we are very proud of everything we have achieved so far.

“In these challenging times, we want West Blatchington to be in the very best position to ensure that all its pupils continue to enjoy the highest quality of education on offer today and in the future.

“We believe that the support we would receive from TPA will make this ambition more achievable. 

“By joining a primary specialist multi-academy trust such as TPA, we believe we will gain the capacity to build on our strengths as an aspirational and inclusive school.  

“Our ambition is to work working towards becoming an Ofsted-rated outstanding.”

The formal consultation will begin on Thursday, January 26 and will run until Tuesday, February 28.

Following this, and subject to the proposals being approved by the Department for Education, West Blatchington could join TPA during the summer term this year. 

The school said consultation documents have been issued to parents and staff at West Blatchington Primary and Nursery School, Brighton and Hove City Council, local primary schools, the local MP, and the Trade Unions recognised by Brighton and Hove City Council.

For more information contact the school or see their website.