Extra £300k a year as Winterton school is latest to become academy
Another of the region's secondary schools has converted to an academy, in a bid to become "outstanding" with Ofsted inspectors.
Winterton Comprehensive School, on Newport Drive, bid to become an academy in March, after planning the move for more than a year.
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Name change: Winterton Community Academy pupils, from left, Giorgianna Scatola, Chloe Turtle and Josiah Earle, outside the school
Becoming an academy will see the school's name change to Winterton Community Academy, and will also mean an increase in funding.
The academy will be entitled to an additional £300,000 every year.
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Head teacher John Fitzgerald said: "We were attracted by the additional flexibility that comes with additional finance. We will be directly funded rather then the money coming through the local authority. Our drive is to be completely "outstanding" and the additional funding and flexibility will enable us to drive forward and reach that goal."
The school has converted independently to an academy, rather than with a sponsor, after gaining the necessary grading from Ofsted.
A school must be "good" or "outstanding" to convert independently, with Winterton recording a "good with outstanding features" report in November last year.
Mr Fitzgerald said he was pleased to have converted without a sponsor.
"Becoming an academy gives us the responsibility for land, buildings and finances, and we no longer have the same link with North Lincolnshire Council," he said. "We wanted to be able to determine the future of the school ourselves and see ourselves become even more of a community-focused school.
"If you end up with a sponsor that has particular views it can contrast with where the school actually wants to go.
"We see the school as serving the wider community and we want to continue doing that while we work to become 'outstanding'."
The news has been met with a positive response from pupils.
Giorgianna Scatola, 15, said: "I think we will work together to try and be 'outstanding' and this will help a lot.
"The community name will bring us together as a team and help the school."
Chloe Turtle, 15, added: "I really like it that we have become an academy and I look forward to what the future might bring. I think it will help us to aim even higher as a school."
To mark the conversion, the school is using part of the cash to build a permanent feature on the site, with ideas being submitted by pupils.
Comments
by hurtingfan
Friday, October 05 2012, 12:33PM
“Why should a school have to bcome an acadamy to get more funding? Surely it must be made a level playing field for all schools to get the same funding and give EVERY pupil the chance of a good education.
Seems to illetest to me!”