Students protest outside Holland Park School
(Picture: Tom Fox)Around 60 pupils from one of London’s most well-known state schools held a protest before lessons against plans for it to be taken over by an academy chain.
The pupils from troubled Holland Park School held signs saying “Don’t Take Our School” and “I am not hysterical, I am furious” as other schoolchildren and teachers arrived at the school on Monday.
They were protesting against a decision for the school to join United Learning, the biggest academy chain in the country.
The pupils said their voices have been ignored.
The Holland Park School Parent Collective, said: “They [the students] haven’t been asked about having United Learning foisted upon them.
“Along with their parents, teachers and staff, students want a say in the shaping of the future of their education and the future of their school.”
The students said they want to be consulted about what happens to their school, including the choice of joining forces with nearby Kensington Aldridge Academy instead of United Learning.
The school has been under scrutiny since claims of a “toxic” working culture and “public shaming” of students were made.
The government gave the school, whose former headteacher earned at least £280,000 in 2020, a financial notice to improve in November. It said it should consider joining a multi-academy trust and rein in the salaries of its highly paid leaders.
The governing body wants the school to join United Learning. But Kensington and Chelsea council wants the school, which has been dubbed the ‘Socialist Eton’ and has educated a number of politicians’ children, to form an academy trust with Kensington Aldridge Academy.
A spokeswoman for Holland Park School said: “We are proud to have an engaged student body. While we know many students appreciate why the school’s successful future is best served by joining a strong academy trust, we also know that some do not agree.
“However, the serious issues facing the school are such that governors, who are legally accountable for their decisions, firmly believe their approach is in the best interests of the school and the students, whose achievement and wellbeing are central to every decision we take.
“We have started a stakeholder engagement programme so that we can continue to hear views from the school community in a number of different ways to make sure all parties can have their say.”
