Letter from a Kings Parent re merger

This is a letter I have sent out to interested parties - you may find some of its contents enlightening. Please look at the links to get a view of the reaction of some of the Tomlinscote's parents. I am proud to be a Kings parent. I am distressed by the reaction of (hopefully) the minority of Tomlinscotes' parents. I am sure many of them have not seen first hand the fantastic work carried out at Kings with such a wonderful mix of students. I would be ashamed  if I was a Tomlinscote parent at the moment. I will not lower my standards to their level and throw degrading and hurtful comments at their school, staff, parents and more importantly, their students.

Kind regards

Tina Carney M.Ed, BEd, DipS.E. Dip. R.D.

Dear all,

 

I am addressing this primarily to Michael Gove our local MP and of course minister in charge of such educational issues, Mr Ryles, retiring Principal of Tomlinscote/Kings Federation, Mike Wright who is following the story for the local paper and to  representatives at Surrey County Council.

 

Parents and Staff - please feel free to send this on to other interested parties.

 

see also

http://tomlinscote-kings.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2011-03-01T00:00:00Z&updated-max=2011-04-01T00:00:00%2B01:00&max-results=13" target=_blank>http://tomlinscote-kings.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2011-03-01T00%3A00%3A00Z&updated-max=2011-04-01T00%3A00%3A00%2B01%3A00&max-results=13

 

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=190058327699422#!/photo.php?fbid=186624148048167&set=o.190058327699422&comments" target=_blank>http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=190058327699422#!/photo.php?fbid=186624148048167&set=o.190058327699422&comments

 

http://petitions.surreycc.gov.uk/tomlinscotekings/" target=_blank>http://petitions.surreycc.gov.uk/tomlinscotekings/

 

Apologies if you already have seen these links but I think it is important we all see what is being said about Kings and indeed Tomlinscote, by parents and students.   With this amount of passion - I am sure Stephen Spielberg will be looking to buy the rights to making a film in the future!

 

Anyway - to keep you all in the loop!

 

Mike Wright from the Camberley News and Mail, rang me this morning to get my views on the 'proposed' merger - light touch paper and stand back!

 

Mike is very interested to hear from other parents and staff to hear their comments. At the moment I feel he is getting more from the Tomlinscote camp.

His number is 01483 508 972 / mike.wright@aldershot.co.uk if you wish to add your comments.  If you read some of the entries on the links above, you will maybe want to express your own concerns.

 

These comments are purely my own but as usual come from the heart and the way that I see things as a realistic parent and former teacher.

 

1. As a parent of a student at Kings, I live in Bagshot and therefore technically not in the traditional catchment for Tomlinscote or Kings. My daughter is in Year 10 and many of these changes will not impinge on her education as such, although I do fear that the undercurrents may have a detrimental effect on the workings of both sites as moral among staff must be affected.

2.     I am dismayed by comments from the Tomlinscote parents about Kings’ students and staff both in the media and on a personal level.  What message is this giving to their own children about how to treat others in their own community? The students at Kings and indeed in the Watchetts Park area are not second class citizens and deserve the same opportunities as everyone else.

3.     I am saddened that Tomlinscote staff, parents and students (many of the names on the petition are students) feel they have to have a petition, which indicates that Tomlinscote’s academic standards will deteriorate if the merger goes through. That more or less implies that Kings’ students will lower that standard for whatever reason. Many Kings students have achieved outstanding academic results in the past and have gone onto university or other courses of further education. One boy recently achieved 11 A/A* GCSE’s. In the same year one student only attained one GCSE, but this was an outstanding result for him and the hardworking staff who did not give up on him. Sadly, Ofsted and the local government seem to look at an average of these two results and not at the immense hard work of the staff involved in ensuring that every student achieves to their own potential and leaves school with a rounded education in coping with life. It is a small school so therefore less numbers to put into the equation.

4.    Staff, parents and students have been lied to by Surrey County Council over a number of years. I feel there has been a hidden agenda for at least five years over the future of Kings and indeed of Tomlinscote. Tomlinscote are in the process of having a £5 million Vocational unit built on their site for the SHAPE (Surrey Heath Area Partnership in Education) team. Was Kings or Collingwood considered when these plans were put forward? Bearing in mind Kings and Collingwood are just as likely (or more likely) to have students who would need (or prefer) to follow a more vocational course of study from Year 10 onwards. Putting this building at Tomlinscote – squeezed into an area already struggling with parking issues and lack of other teaching accommodation, makes one think that Surrey knew Tomlinscote was destine to become an ‘upper’ school.

5.    At meetings  in school a little under a year ago, we were all reassured that Kings would remain having its own identity and that the ‘soft federation’ between Kings and Tomlinscote was only there until Kings’ academic results improved. The parents of the students coming into year 7 last September particularly wanted reassurance that they did not have to be looking to changing uniforms or school sites in the near future. It is interesting that these new changes have come about after parents have been notified of the allocation of places for this coming September. Granted, only 56 parents chose Kings as its first choice, but many others were put off by the unnecessary bad-press given to Kings due to the Ofsted report last year and the fact that there were rumours about it being closed in the next few years. There is also a fall in birth rate, so there are fewer children around anyway. Will parents now be allowed to reconsider the given placement? After all, some parents would have wanted Tomlinscote for their child but because of traditional oversubscription, did not gain a place. If this merger does take place, it means that ‘Kings/Tomlinscote’ can accommodate more students in future years. If they go to Kings in September, they will be in Tomlinscote automatically the following year. Some parents who have been allocated Collingwood, may now wish to review the situation.

6.    I personally chose Kings not for its academic achievements but for its caring pastoral care. I was immensely impressed by all aspects of the Student Support Unit, which I visited before making the final decision as to which secondary school to choose - I have not been disappointed by their invaluable input since my daughter started at Kings. I did not see anything comparable at Tomlinscote or Collingwood. I was impressed by Mr John Edwards’s view of education of how a school should not not only be measured by academic achievement but also by the calibre of citizens we put back into society. My daughter needed a smaller school where her strengths could be built on and self esteem boosted. I felt her needs would not be met in an academically motivated environment, as she has always required an I.E.P. (Individual Education Plan) but not a Special Needs Statement. I would love to say my child is academic and achieving above average levels in some subjects, but I have accept she is who she is and that she finds written work challenging. She is easily ‘bruised’ and de-motivated by academic pressure. She is not ‘a thicko’ or ‘stupid’ (quotes from two Tomlinscote mothers about students from Kings). I am proud of my daughter as she is gifted in so many other ways.  She is a beautiful individual with a caring heart, who can deal with people from all walks of society, despite their age, creed, colour, socio-economic class and academic attainment. She can hold her own in any social situation due to the education she has had thus far. I would hope she does not look down on others as it appears many of the Tomlinscote students are being ‘coached’ to do.

7.    Yes, I agree there will be environmental impact with all the comings and goings across the A325, which already needs to cope with Frimley Park Hospital and the various large office developments in the area.

8.    SCC is not looking at the whole picture – Watchetts Junior school was also put into Special Measures. Watchetts is the main feeder school into Kings. Do they not see that the whole area needs more resources and making larger schools will not help? There is a need in Surrey Heath for a smaller set up, which has support for students from the Watchetts area but also for other students, whose parents would prefer a smaller set up for their children. Many gifted students do well at Kings because of the smaller groups and the fantastic resources. The staff have rarely failed a student if they could possibly help it, they go all out to keep ‘disaffected’ students in education and supported until they leave school. The college always had an excellent reputation for not removing students with challenging behaviour, which invariably led to poor academic achievement. A larger school would lose these students in the system.

9.    How will all the staff be affected? Moral at both schools must now be fairly low as I suspect many will need to reapply for their senior positions. There will only be a need for one ‘Head of Year’ where there is currently on in each school. Administration staff will also be affected. How many will ‘cut and run’ before all this is decided? Tomlinscote already have big issues in their Maths department with staff leaving for a variety of reasons. The students need stability at this time and reassurance that their needs will be fully met now and in the future.

10. If this ‘absorption’ ‘merger’ ‘amalgamation’ is to go ahead, and no-one is agreeing to it perhaps it would be better if both schools ‘closed’ and a new one ‘opened’?  I think Kingtomscote  or Tomkingscote would be great names for the new school! Then no-one will be pleased!

 

I think everyone needs to put their views forward. You may agree or not agree with my views, we are all in different boats. I just hope SCC look at the views and reflect on them before making a decision.

 

Kind regards to all.

 

Tina Carney