It’s double or quits for high school

Jun 13 2008 by Laurie Stocks-Moore, Chester Chronicle

A STARK ultimatum has been issued to a Chester high school – double GCSE success rates in three years or close.

Blacon High, Melbourne Road, is one of only four schools in Cheshire threatened with closure if it does not improve exam results by 2011.

The Government is targeting 638 schools in England in which fewer than 30% of pupils achieve at least five A-C grades at GCSEs, including English and maths.

Last year, only 16% of pupils at Blacon High achieved this benchmark, well below the national average of 46.7%.

The school must now almost double its success rate if it is to meet the £400m National Challenge, launched on Tuesday by Schools Secretary Ed Balls.

Cheshire County Council has been given 50 days to produce a rescue plan to improve the specialist sports college. If it fails to make progress, intervention and even closure could follow.

Council spokeswoman Rachel Newton said the school should not be rated on results alone.

She said: “At Cheshire County Council, we have always maintained there is more to a good school than academic results alone. We consider that measures of progress are just as important as measures of attainment.

“According to the Government’s contexualised value added system, pupils at Blacon High School make significant progress. In 2007, Blacon was ranked in the top 25% of schools nationally for Key Stages 3-4.

“We will be meeting with the school shortly to determine how to take forward the action plan.”

From April next year, a new unitary council, Cheshire West and the City of Chester, will take over as local education authority.

Its leader, Cllr Mike Jones, said: “The Government is clearly intent on closing schools that aren’t performing.

“But Blacon has a new head who I’m told is very good and she’s got a timescale to improve in.”

If Blacon High fails to improve it could be shut and a new school opened, to be run as a joint project with a high-performing local school and a partner such as a business or university.