Werneth Primary future unclear as Bright Tribe offload school

The Werneth Primary School on Coppice Street

The future of the Werneth Primary School is unclear after the Bright Tribe Trust revealed this morning (Thursday) that its new Trustees had voted for six more of its schools to be rebrokered.

The decision means that new academy trusts will now need to be found for Bright Tribe’s five schools in the East of England – Alde Valley Academy in Leiston, Suffolk; Colchester Academy; and Castle Hill Infant School, Castle Hill Junior School and Cliff Lane Primary School, all in Ipswich – and Werneth Primary on Coppice Street in Oldham.

The respective Regional Schools Commissioners and the Department for Education will identify and decide new sponsors as swiftly as possible, working with the Trust and each school’s leadership.

The new multi-academy trusts will provide the expertise, support and stability needed to allow the academies to be run successfully.

Bright Tribe has been under interim executive leadership and a new Board since last month, when it promised a new regime of understanding and transparency after it was accused of making false claims for government grants. 

The interim Chief Executive Officer is Angela Barry.

She said: “It is absolutely right that Bright Tribe’s academies are able to start afresh.

"This will be a new chapter for each of them, under strong and well-run new academy trusts.

"It is a very positive step that will provide long-term stability and ensure pupils get the first-class education they deserve.

“I know that the respective Regional Schools Commissioners will want to move as quickly as possible to identify the sponsors, and to rebroker the schools.

"In the meantime, everyone associated with each school should have confidence that my team and I will continue to make every decision in the best interests of pupils.”

Werneth Primary Prinicipal Conrad North has welcomed Bright Tribe's decision for now, ahead of the search for a new sponsor.

In a brief statement, he told the Chronicle: "We respect the decision that the Trust Board have made and we look forward to working with the Regional School Commissioner and the DfE to find a new sponsor that is more locally situated, to enable us to continue with the good work that our Werneth team are doing."

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