IN 2006, Chafford Hundred school were given notice to improve by the government. The new head, Chris Tomlinson pleaded with the council for a little time and faith.
He got it and in time, he improved the school, to what it is today. An outstanding school, with the best exam results in the borough.
Now with the financial might of Lord Harris of Peckham and the political support of MP Jackie Doyle Price, they plan to open a second senior school in September 2015, that, all things being equal, will see 1000 students in the school by 2019.
And why not? Why shouldn’t a successful business expand and give hundreds of Thurrock students the best chance in life?
So it is a win-win for the Harris brand…but will anyone lose out?
Thurrock Council has told YT that they do not expect that there will be a 1000 more Thurrock teenagers in the borough by 2019 so, where will they get their students from?
It would seem to depend on the rational choice model. If 600 parents applied for the 200 places available in year 7 last year, then it would seem that 400 will now apply for the 200 places now available for the new school.
But they may mean there are losers. But who could they be?
The two leading candidates could be Ormiston Park Academy (OPA) in Aveley. It is the only undersubscribed senior school in Thurock (according to statistics). It is trailing badly in the 5 A* to C (inc English and Maths) stakes at 38%.
OPA appears to have almost disappeared from the Thurrock radar. But, as long as the backers are happy (The Ormiston Trust) then there may not be any changes.
There are also those cynics (not us m’lord) who wonder whether the OPA students would meet the challenge of the Harris Academy banding exam taken when you apply? For the record, it is not an entrance exam or incontrovertible evidence that the school is selecting students and thus a quasi-grammar school etc etc.
Maybe more significant is the sight you see in Aveley at 5pm every weekday. Students from schools outside the borough, returning home. Perhaps the Coopers and Coburn, Campion, The Chafford school cohort may be a rich ground of future Harris students.
You would have thought that the Hathaway Academy and Ockendon Academy would be looking over their shoulders? How many of the 400 pupils that applied to go to Harris Academy last year but were unsuccessful, went onto those two schools.
Some may say that the fact that Ockendon, deep into September, are still stating that sixth form places are still available, tells its own tale. You also have the feeling that Hathaway Academy’s recent improvement depended greatly on go-ahead principal, James Howarth. Mr Howarth is now fighting cancer.
The other school that may have cause for concern is Hassenbrook Academy. The number of parents who put the school down as first choice was a disastrous 52, compared to 241 for Gable Hall and 223 for St Clere’s.
Oh, and we haven’t even mentioned the Grays Convent……..
All this is pure speculation but worthy of debate. The Harris Federation will have been told that a new school must not disturb the delicate eco-system of Thurrock education but they are ambitious people over in Chafford. We doubt if Mr Tomlinson reads a lot of Gore Vidal but he once said: "It is not enough to succeed. Others must fail."
As we say, what do you think?
