Parents accuse governors of 'betrayal'

Tessa Watkins • Published 3 Mar 2011 10:00 7 Comments

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PARENTS campaigning to save a Tilehurst independent school claim they are being betrayed by its governors.

Angry parents took action and formed a focus group after the shock announcement three weeks ago that The Highlands School in Wardle Avenue was set to close, and many of them have pledged to increase their fees.

Kate Ryan, the school's PTA chairman, said: "We put together a questionnaire asking parents if they would be willing to pay a 10% increase in fees if it meant that the school could stay open. We sent 95 questionnaires out and got 90 back, with 99% of people confirming that they would be happy to pay more fees."

Mrs Ryan and other parents presented the completed questionnaires to the school's governors at a meeting on Saturday. But the governors' response was to send out their own questionnaires to parents on Tuesday, asking for them to be returned by last night (Wednesday).

Mrs Ryan said: "They are just stalling. I think it's an absolute disgrace that we are being made to wait. We worked really hard during those early stages so that we wouldn't be in this position."

The governors are under pressure from Clydesdale Bank to repay the school's £900,000 debt, blaming falling pupil numbers and rising costs. They told parents at the beginning of last month that, although sister school St Edward's School for Boys is thriving, their recovery plan for The Highlands had failed.

Mrs Ryan, who has one daughter at the school already and another due to start after Easter, added: "The staff are an absolute credit to the school and have done so well to maintain normality for the children, but this whole situation has been shockingly mismanaged.

"They have not consulted the children, staff or the parents - it's outrageous. More than 100 children's school places are at stake here and it is wrong on every level that they are allowed to play god with our children and our money."

In last month's letter from the governors, chairman, Sally Pellow, wrote: "We will be doing everything in our power through the rest of this year to make sure that we make it special as we continue to celebrate the children's successes and remember the achievements of The Highlands School over the last 80 years."

No-one from the school was available for comment yesterday.

This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 03 Mar 11

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Common Cents
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Mar 3, 16:02
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Absolute rubbish there from Mrs Pellow. She, her fellow governors and the Principal, Mr Mottram have been conspicuous by their absense . . . not responding to parents' emails, refusing to meet with parents and putting obvious stalling measures in the way of genuine progress.

More investigative work needs to be carried out into what is going here as something isn't stacking up at all.

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Hardworking Parent
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Mar 4, 12:14
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Callous,unprofessional behavior is what i would call this. The governors said that they had spent considerable effort and money to market the school. Parents haven't seen any proof of their efforts, minutes of their regular meetings. Mr Mottram and the governors have been concentrating their time and effort at St Edwards rather than devoting equal attention to Highlands.... Such incompetence and total neglect towards their duty.... thats what i would say!!

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Happy Mum
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Mar 9, 11:30
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The Principal has done what he can with the finances available in terms of marketing for the Highlands....why can't people just accept, there are NOT enough parents out there who want to send their daughters to that school!! simples......as you say St Edwards is thriving.....this is due to it being run in a completely different way.....the teachers are superb as are all the senior staff....and the results speak for themselves in terms of how many of the boys achieve success at the local grammar schools plus the other secondary public schools.

I hear the Highlands doesn't have this to fall back on so it's failed. There are too many other girls schools competing, that are very successful...I feel for the children but you have to accept the decision and move on..........

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ex-highlands-boy
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Mar 10, 22:23
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@Happy Mum

You may be completely right......but that does not excuse the Governors, who run both schools, who appear to me to be slightly ignorant of their duties under the company Articles that run both schools, the Companies Act & the Charities Acts.

I agree there are not enough parents who want to send their daughters - which is why the governors agreed at a public meeting at the school on Tuesday evening to make the school co-ed from next academic year, should the rescue plan be acceptable to all stakeholders.

The market may not be sufficient to support girls only education......but there will be another market for parents wanting to keep siblings together. Market forces will find a way.....

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Happy Mum
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Mar 11, 10:38
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@ ex-Highlands-boy

But you fail to realise that parents won't want to "keep siblings together" at one school...the point is parents send their boys to St Eds because it IS boys only!! I am afraid the latest proposal won't make a blind bit of difference .....it's sad but the school won't survive, certainly in the longer term.......as the competion for girls schools in the area is high and they are successful. As many parents (including Highlands parents) are saying, "who will be willing to send their children to a school (The Highlands) which is on the brink of closing"? I know there are a group of parents there who are not convinced and have already made provisions to move their children.

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Highlands old boy
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Mar 14, 00:03
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@ Happy Mum

I have been involved fairly closely with the rescue plan - and I think it is quite viable, as long as there is support from all the stakeholders involved. In effect, the longer term plan will be to "re-boot" the school and try to address some of the issues that seem to have been ignored. Given the amount of business expertise that attended the open meeting I went to last week - marketing, sales, legal.......even a retired bank manager who lived nearby - there are the skills needed to save this school.

In terms of the whole "on the brink of closing" - the governors very much jumped the gun unfortunately. The Articles of Association that govern the Ltd company that run both schools clearly state that they are to "run a school at each site". Yes, company articles can be changed - however, for a charity, only after approval for the change is received from the Charity Commission.

As far as I am aware, no approval has been received - nor any ammendment filed at Companies House, as required by law. in effect - the Governors have acted beyond their powers for managing the company/charity.

Unfortunately, it's mismanagement like this that could bring both schools down.

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Happy Mum
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Mar 15, 14:10
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@ Highlands Old Boy....

I wish you luck with your venture to save TH............ but if I had a daughter there, I'd be looking for an alternative and now....

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