It seems that there is a shortage of headteachers.
Continue reading Is This True?.
January 2010 Archives
The North Western Evening Mail is being partisan in what it will and won't publish. That is one thing a majority can all agree on. It supports the people behind the Academy no matter what. It exhibits the same blind faith in Mr Woodcock and never misses an opportunity to allow Furness Academy Limited or Mr Woodcock space in its pages.
I have known for some time that it censors comments for no apparent reason and it refuses to print letters sent in by certain individuals no matter what the content.
I have known for some time that it censors comments for no apparent reason and it refuses to print letters sent in by certain individuals no matter what the content.
Continue reading A Service.
There seems to be an increasing level of churn (Google it) in the staffing of Furness Academy Limited.
You would think that with redundancies in the offing as the TUPE safeguards begin to fall away the company would allow a little natural wastage to take place but no.
You would think that with redundancies in the offing as the TUPE safeguards begin to fall away the company would allow a little natural wastage to take place but no.
Continue reading Furness Academy Limited Is Recruiting Again.
Having now read this document available on the Academy Company website it is clear in my mind that this consultation is simply a PR exercise for a single site Academy.
Have a read for yourself and see what conclusion you come to.
PS
MC2 and Mouchel are nowhere near as good as concocting a biased consultation document as Cumbria County Council and CN Group Research are!
Have a read for yourself and see what conclusion you come to.
PS
MC2 and Mouchel are nowhere near as good as concocting a biased consultation document as Cumbria County Council and CN Group Research are!
Continue reading Consultation My Left Foot.
I have now been told why Furness Academy Limited wants a single site school.
Continue reading The Reasons Why.
Thanks to a commenter I was able to capture for posterity some very lax Academy propaganda Evening Mail attention to detail!
Continue reading Lee & His Evening Mail II.
Anne Burns is a professional County Councillor who has some portfolio
or other for children's issues. She is a Labour councillor. She has been a County Councillor for quite
a while.
Jack Richardson is a borough councillor who moves from ward to ward to make sure he can get himself re-elected. He is of the conservative persuasion and has been voted by his 57 old farts councillors to be council leader. A grand title indeed. He also has extensive experience of being a County councillor.
Here are Anne Burns and JR's "words of wisdom" regarding this most contentious of issues.
Jack Richardson is a borough councillor who moves from ward to ward to make sure he can get himself re-elected. He is of the conservative persuasion and has been voted by his 57 old farts councillors to be council leader. A grand title indeed. He also has extensive experience of being a County councillor.
Here are Anne Burns and JR's "words of wisdom" regarding this most contentious of issues.
Continue reading JR, Anne Burns. What's The Point?.
A bit of light relief.
If anyone fancies a go at guessing what the missing section is...
If anyone fancies a go at guessing what the missing section is...
Continue reading Quick competition.
Well he had to really didn't he?
He was after all the architect of the two site solution which was sold to the parents involved.
He was after all the architect of the two site solution which was sold to the parents involved.
Continue reading John Hutton Speaks.
My flabber has been ghasted yet again by Douglas Blackledge and the
company he represents. They have now signed up to a bribery scheme that
"rewards" good behaviour with points worth 1p each (nominally) that all
kids "win" when they behave themselves.
Continue reading VivoMiles Bribing Kids To Behave?.
Well the Evening Mail seems to have dropped all pretence of being anything but and is the medium of choice when it comes to releasing news to the "community".
Continue reading Doug In His "Newsletter"..
Here in Barrow we have two fine school buildings facing possible demolition at the hands of the County Council and yet the BBC delivers a report from English Heritage that argues such buildings are built to last and should be preserved as there are clear and measurable benefits in doing so.
We also had Moira Swann spinning the blatant lie, the proven lie, that school rolls are falling fast to get her Academies programme completed. The Telegraph has a report to show that in fact they are going in the opposite direction.
We also had Moira Swann spinning the blatant lie, the proven lie, that school rolls are falling fast to get her Academies programme completed. The Telegraph has a report to show that in fact they are going in the opposite direction.
Continue reading Yet More Left Hand, Right Hand Issues.
Captured for posterity once again.
Continue reading Dougs Missive To Parents 23-1-2010.
In yet another fake exclusive Mr Jonathan Lee and his Furness Academy Limited Newlsetter, available for just 45p from all newsagents, corner shops, supermarkets, petrol stations, hairdressers, cafe's and street vendors in Barrow, Dalton. Ulverston and throughout Furness, finally catch up with what most people knew about on Friday.
There is only going to be a single site Academy.
There is only going to be a single site Academy.
Continue reading Lee & His Evening Mail Late Again!.
Bearing in mind what is going to unfold in the coming days I thought it would be worth nicking the excellent Rafael Behrs glossary of what political terms really mean. They are not all applicable to the Academy fiasco that is rapidly unravelling but a surprising number are!
Continue reading A Glossary.
Just had some news I had heard a while back confirmed.
Continue reading Another Quickie!.
Ring any bells?
Continue reading Just A Quickie!.
To Furness Academy and every other secondary school in the land.
Continue reading Stonewall Coming Soon.
Another one captured for posterity!
Continue reading Principals Message 19th January 2010.
Moira Swann the architect of the Cumbrian Academies programme and the bane of Barrow is leaving her post this summer.
Continue reading She's Gone!.
Blogging will be light for the foreseeable future. I am embarking on a project that will be taking up a lot of my time.
I have also been asked about the new house names revealed today in the Academy Company's official newsletter otherwise known as the North Western Evening Mail rather than on the company's website.
I have also been asked about the new house names revealed today in the Academy Company's official newsletter otherwise known as the North Western Evening Mail rather than on the company's website.
Continue reading Blogging Lite.
It seems as though the much trumpeted student voice has not been allowed to speak. I am aware this is just one side of the argument as the Academy company stubbornly refuses to engage with the community despite what its proponents stated last summer. It hasn't updated its website since 14th December and it's officials haven't spoken in the Evening Mail for a similar length of time.
Continue reading A Prom Is A Prom Except....
Is this the qualification that was taken by certain schools destroyed to manufacture the Furness Academy Limited?
If it was it might explain a lot.
Personally I think the CVA scoring system is just obfuscation and serves no other purpose.
League tables of numbers of kids passing GCSE's or five passes inc Maths and English are next to useless. Surely any form of education, state, private, home, higher or lifelong learning has to have value for the individual or there is no point to any of it unless you subscribe to the socialist model of indoctrination to ensure the "right sort" of model citizen pops out at the other end.
If it was it might explain a lot.
Personally I think the CVA scoring system is just obfuscation and serves no other purpose.
League tables of numbers of kids passing GCSE's or five passes inc Maths and English are next to useless. Surely any form of education, state, private, home, higher or lifelong learning has to have value for the individual or there is no point to any of it unless you subscribe to the socialist model of indoctrination to ensure the "right sort" of model citizen pops out at the other end.
Continue reading The OCR National Level 2 in ICT.
We have now come to the end of period of cold, snow, ice and slush that has the Academy shut for a just one day. I have been waiting for Mr Blackledge, Mr Gill, Mr Wilson, Mrs Attwood or Mr Kelly to publicly thank the kids, staff and parents who managed to ensure as many children as possible...
Continue reading Thank you!.
Could it?
Continue reading Couldn't Happen Here....
Incredibly despite the "unprecedented investment" and the strong arm tactics of the DCSF and complicit Councils 41 Academies are failing to meet the Governments (aka DCSF) own targets!
Continue reading Even The Times Is On The Case!.
Barrow needed an Academy?
Moira Swann
Enid Fraser
Anne Attwood
Dave Kelly
Jim Buchanan
Anne Burns
Stewart Young
and many, many other people who contributed to the lies contained within the "expression of interest" document dissected on this very site (use the search box to see for yourselves)
Moira Swann
Enid Fraser
Anne Attwood
Dave Kelly
Jim Buchanan
Anne Burns
Stewart Young
and many, many other people who contributed to the lies contained within the "expression of interest" document dissected on this very site (use the search box to see for yourselves)
Continue reading Remind Me Again Why....
Not in Barrow obviously!
Continue reading Parent Power Lewisham Style!.
Given the weather conditions of the past few days are not in any way unusual you would think that it was within the realms of possibility for the DCSF to actually have a policy written down which their school heads are supposed to follow.
Continue reading Close It Or Open It. It's A No Win Situation!.
Possibly!
Continue reading Does Mr Fay Read This Blog?.
Back in the dark days of early 2009 Moira, Anne & Dave were banging on and on about how the Academy school was going to be at the 'heart of the community'. It was going to be THE focal point for the local community it was going to serve and for that reason alone it was a thing worth having.
Continue reading At The Heart Of The Community?.
You decide.
Continue reading Ed Balls Dumb? Surely Not!.
Bit of a shock for me to accept part of this.
I am of the opinion that having a uniform provided many benefits. Not the 'looking smart' at all times benefit touted by the righteous but the more common sense benefits of everyone saving their own clothes from damage and dirt, everyone getting a sense of being part of a group not a team but simply a group of people which to me has huge benefits for young minds trying to find their place in the world and reducing the damaging 'fashion competitions' amongst impressionable teenagers which are won or lost on the depth of parents pockets.
I am of the opinion that having a uniform provided many benefits. Not the 'looking smart' at all times benefit touted by the righteous but the more common sense benefits of everyone saving their own clothes from damage and dirt, everyone getting a sense of being part of a group not a team but simply a group of people which to me has huge benefits for young minds trying to find their place in the world and reducing the damaging 'fashion competitions' amongst impressionable teenagers which are won or lost on the depth of parents pockets.
Continue reading Things Really Are Not What They Seem.