Isle of Wight Council still 'failing' its education functions

Isle of Wight Council is ‘failing to perform’ some or all of its education functions, according to a direction issued by the Department for Education (DfE).

It marks the second time since 2013 that the DfE has issued a direction to the council due to concerns regarding education, as well as children’s services.

In January 2013 an Ofsted inspection found the Council’s arrangements for the protection of children were ‘inadequate’.

A further inspection in May judged that 50 per cent of the Council’s maintained secondary schools required special measures or significant improvement, with attainment at Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 4 significantly below national averages.

As a result of this, a strategic partnership agreement with Hampshire County Council was put in place, with Hampshire’s director of children’s services taking control of Isle of Wight’s children’s services.

This new direction acknowledges that, while there have been some improvements, schools are still performing below the national averages and the Council has failed to perform its social services functions and some or all of its education functions.

The direction notifies the Council that the strategic partnership agreement with Hampshire will stay in place until 5 June 2018, with Hampshire’s director of children’s services staying in place throughout this time.

Additionally, it also directs the Council to ‘carry out regular assessments of the standards of performance of the Council’s education functions’, which includes levels of support and challenge to the Council’s maintained schools, as well as taking ‘appropriate action to effect improvements which are identified as necessary’.

The note makes clear that this includes cooperation with governing bodies of maintained schools who are being encouraged to seek academy conversion.