As soon as I write something positive about Kent primary school standards, bad news has a habit of turning up, this time with two  more OFSTED failures at Sandown School in Deal and Kingsmead Primary in Canterbury.   

The story of Sandown Primary in Deal illustrates the problems too many schools are having...........

Even before most appeals are heard, there are signs that up to 90 additional grammar school places are being freed up for boys in West & North West Kent, easing pressures on the many boys who have passed the Kent Test but currently do not hold a grammar school place. Both Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys and Wilmington  Grammar School for Boys are indicating to Appeal Panels that they are able to admit an additional class of entry (30 boys each),  as large year groups passing through the schools free up additional space lower down, for one year only. An appeal panel would have difficulty in not offering this number of places as the school has indicated there is room.  A few additional places will also be freed up .........

Whilst I have no claim to be an expert on OFSTED, I read OFSTED Reports regularly, and see the effect they have on schools. This may be the reason why once again you may have heard me on Radio Kent expressing my views ion Monday. Alternatively, it being a Bank Holiday, is it that Radio Kent could not get anyone from the education service to comment? As a previous President of Kent Branch National Association of Head Teachers, I have enormous sympathy with the pressures on schools, but we must put the children first. However, the new confrontational version of OFSTED.........

According to the Department for Education, just one new application for Academy status has been received this month in Kent or Medway, from Hartley Primary School. Interestingly,.......

Judd School Appeals have taken place this week, with Skinners at the end of the month.  This is for entry in September 2012.

But................

Cranbrook School is consulting on changing its age of admission from 13 to 11, for entry in 2014, as explained in a letter from the Headteacher to parents; a recommendation which in my view is long overdue. 

First, a bit of background into why Cranbrook still exists as Kent's only 13-18 school......

Weald of Kent Grammar School has recently offered a number of additional places to girls in the West Kent  selective area, as places have become available. In addition Tonbridge Grammar School has offered further places, seeing its cut off off score falling to 412 (from 414) for Inner girls. This underlines the conundrum about the proposed Sevenoaks annex. Currently, there are some 50 boys in the area, found to be of grammar school ability, who have no grammar school place and probably no girls. However, any annex has to offer the same number of places for boys and girls. I cannot see Weald  of Kent being supportive of a proposal that could take away many of its students, and in any case I am not convinced that parents living in Sevenoaks will choose an annex over the established and OFSTED Outstanding Weald of Kent Grammar, just a few miles away in Tonbridge.

Why the discrepancy?......

At last we are seeing a slight improvement in Kent's primary school OFSTED record, as St Nicholas Primary School, New Romney is the latest to respond to its "Notice to Improve" by, to quote the headteacher: ""The whole school community has worked hard as a team to bring about the improvements noted by OFSTED"".  Other schools that have recently seen the same improvement are: .........

Figures obtained by the Kent Messenger Group show that one in nine grammar school places in Kent are taken up by children from private schools. This is clearly down to the influence of Super Selection in many cases, and of coaching provided by those private schools which specialise in securing grammar school places for their children. Five of the six grammar schools admitting the highest proportion of privately educated children have an element of super selection, with the list topped by ......

Pressure continues to build over the shortage of reception class places in Bearsted, centred on Madginford Park Infants School, Thurnham CofE Infants School and St John's Primary School. At the recent meeting of Bearsted Parish Council,  Paul Carter, Leader of Kent County Council, listened to the concerns of many local parents whose children have no local school to go to, and has promised to do what he can to resolve the problem. One new issue is that at present, 43 of the 80 plus children without a school of their choice have been allocated places at  St Paul's Infant School over two miles away. KCC is responsible for providing transport for those unable to make other arrangements, likely to be a minibus, driver as the only adult present, no seat belts, cost estimated at .......