A YORK primary school’s ENTIRE governing body has resigned following what governors call an ‘irreparable breakdown in trust and communication’ with the academy trust to which the school belongs.

Former governors at Scarcroft Primary School stress they have no problems with the leadership at Scarcroft itself, which they describe as ‘exemplary’.

But they claim the relationship with the South Bank Multi-Academy Trust to which the school belongs broke down completely, to the point where any attempts by Scarcroft governors to question decisions made by the academy chain’s trustees were deemed ‘hostile’.

However, the academy trust hit back saying governors had made a number of allegations which did not reflect the reality in Scarcroft or in any school within the Trust. 

The Press understands that governors at Scarcroft had concerns about a number of academy trust policies - including controversial changes to pay and conditions for teaching assistants, and provision for children with special education needs and disabilities.

But one governor who raised concerns in public - Labour councillor Jonny Crawshaw, who had been a governor at Scarcroft for seven years - was deemed to be in breach of the academy trust’s code of conduct.

Cllr Crawshaw insists all he did was express - through a column in The Press and on social media - his concerns about plans to re-employ teaching assistants on reduced ‘term-time’ only contracts that would equate to a real-terms pay cut up to £3,000 per year.

He also tweeted photos of picket lines outside Scarcroft Primary School during national teachers' strikes earlier this year.

After being found in breach of the academy trust’s code of conduct he resigned – and Scarcroft School’s entire governing body has now done the same.

“It seems the Trust board is either unable or unwilling to hear challenge,” Cllr Crawshaw said.

Fellow outgoing Scarcroft governor Tracey Barrett added: “Our opinions and advice are simply not valued.”

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In a letter to the academy trust’s board informing them of the mass resignation, outgoing chair of the Scarcroft Primary School governors David Rowsell said he and his fellow governors felt they were no longer able to contribute to debates about academy trust policy ‘without being labelled as 'hostile' or in breach of the code of conduct’.

He enclosed resignation letters from the other governors, and added: “You will be able to judge from these letters the level of frustration and disquiet felt by a talented and experienced group of volunteers who have worked passionately for the school, collectively for a number of years.”

Academy chain chair Ian Wiggins today hit back, saying the behaviour of one Scarcroft governor - unnamed, but understood to refer to Cllr Crawshaw - fell ‘well below the expectations and standards set out in our Code of Conduct’.

He added: “Trustees met with this governor, who has since taken the decision to resign along with a number of other members of the governing body.”

Mr Wiggins said the academy trust ‘greatly values the service and dedication of the large number of governors who serve across our schools and we certainly value debate across our community’.

But he went on: “The former governors have made a number of allegations within their resignation letters which do not reflect the reality in Scarcroft or in any school within the Trust.

“The trust board is taking the opportunity to further strengthen the governance arrangements for Scarcroft to make sure they can provide the best support and challenge for the headteacher, staff and children. We will write to parents in due course with further details.”

Scarcroft Primary was rated ‘good’ by Ofsted inspectors following their most recent visit in October last year.

Inspectors said that both the school’s governors and the chief executive and trustees of the South Bank Academy Trust were ‘highly knowledgeable and deeply committed to the school’.

What Scarcroft School's resigning governors say

The Press has been given sight of the resignation letters of Scarcroft Primary School governors, who resigned en masse following what they described as an ‘irreparable breakdown in trust and communication’ between them and the chief executiove and board of the South Bank Multi Academy Trust.

Here is what they had to say:

Governor John Bryan: “Throughout the year that I have served as a governor I have felt that the LGB (local governing body) was doing an excellent job of supporting the head and staff of the school. However, throughout the year I have also been extremely frustrated by the lack of clarity of our role. The final straw has been the treatment by the MAT (multi-academy trust) of a fellow governor: due process has not been followed and the MAT's behaviour appears frankly to be high handed.”

Governor Tracey Barrett: “It is with a heavy heart that I tender my resignation as Governor at Scarcroft School.  I joined the Governing body because I believed that I could make a difference but it has become apparent that the MAT has little regard or respect for the experience and commitment of our LGB (or indeed any of its other stakeholders, including parents) and I have been made to feel that our opinions are unwelcome and simply do not matter.”

Governor Daniel Staples: “We have had serious concerns about decisions made by the MAT in the recent past. We have tried to constructively engage with them about this in the spirit of challenge and support. The MAT's failure to, in many cases, even respond to us has been very frustrating for some time."

12 months of controversry at York academy chain

The South Bank Multi-Academy Trust has found itself at the centre of controversy in the last 12 months.

The trust – which is headed by a board of trustees and chief executive Mark Hassack - is made up of four York primary schools and two York secondaries: Carr Junior, Knavesmire Primary, Scarcroft Primary, Woodthorpe Primary, Millthorpe and York High. 

York Press: Mark Hassack, the chief executive of the South Bank Multi-Academy TrustMark Hassack, the chief executive of the South Bank Multi-Academy Trust (Image: Supplied)

Late last year the academy trust warned 43 teaching assistants and other support staff across its six schools that they faced the sack if they did not sign new contracts which would see them being paid only during term-time.

The trust said it faced ‘significant financial challenges’ and argued that the move would correct a ‘disparity’ whereby some more qualified teaching assistants were paid for 52 weeks of the year, whereas less qualified staff were paid for just 39 weeks.

But many teaching assistants were in tears as they spoke out against the proposals at a public meeting in December, saying they would mean pay cuts of several thousand pounds.

No-one from the multi-academy trust attended the meeting - although an empty chair was left out for them.

Almost 1,000 people – including many parents of children at academy schools – had earlier signed a petition protesting at the changed terms and conditions.

The trust brought in the changes anyway, and in March this year, parents of children with special education needs and disabilities (SEN) claimed many teaching assistants had left as a result and their children were suffering.

A letter to senior managers and the academy trust board, signed by more than 200 people, said there were ‘serious concerns’ among parents about the loss of experienced teaching assistants.

Pupils who were previously thriving at the schools were now struggling, they claimed.

But a spokesperson for the academy trust insisted there had been no change to the overall number of SEN posts - and that the trust was in the process of recruiting “skilled, experienced members of staff” to fill vacancies.