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Dear parents and carers,
I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your feedback on our consultation regarding the proposed amendment to our faith designation. It has been really heartening to hear from our parents how much you value our school and our approach to supporting your children.
That being said, we also understand that any potential change also leads to a number of questions – and this consultation is no different.
While we welcome all comments, challenge and views, we think it is important that any discussion is based on realities rather than misunderstandings. What became apparent from a couple of conversations during our first drop-in session is that we may not have been as clear as we had hoped on a few critical issues.
That is why I just wanted to write to you to reiterate several points to try any alleviate any concerns.
Firstly, I think it is prudent to focus on what will not change.
- We have made a firm commitment that we will not amend our admissions policy to include faith either now or in the future. In fact, we already have two CofE schools in our Trust who have open admissions - so faith is not part of the application process for their communities. This works well and we will simply mirror this approach at Ealing Fields.
- There will be no change to the curriculum. When Ealing Fields joined our Trust seven years ago, it adopted nearly all of the Trust’s approaches to education – and this has been central to the remarkable progress that we have collectively made. We will simply keep doing what we are already doing.
- We will still be funded in the same way, and we will still welcome Ofsted to our school.
In fact, parents, students and staff will see very little difference in the day-to-day running of the school. This leaves the very obvious question about why we are doing this if nothing really changes. The are three core reasons, none of which are linked to the General Election or politics.
- With the exception of a celebration service rather than a communion, our school is already a CofE school in all but name. This was agreed when Ealing Fields first made the decision to become part of the Twyford Trust. As a result, we feel it is right to be transparent about who we are. This will also protect the school’s ability to continue with our Christian ethos.
- We want to attract the best staff who will flourish in our community. We feel it is right that people who work in our school understand our values, and that we ensure that their values align with us. Alongside supporting our brilliant students, we have a responsibility to our colleagues and their careers.
- By changing our designation, we will also face more scrutiny. We will have a separate SIAMS inspection to look at our values, our commitment to social justice and how we prepare children for the modern world. We believe this is a good thing.
Finally, it is important to state that a communion will be offered annually within the celebration service. It is also important to note that there is no pressure on students to take communion, and we will also continue to celebrate all that is good across the school in many other ways.
So, please do take a moment to complete our survey and share your views. We really do want to know what our whole community has to say, and we would be hugely grateful for your feedback.
Please refer to https://ealingfieldsconsultation.co.uk/ for more information.
Many thanks,
CEO Associate Headteacher
Dame Alice Hudson Ms Jo Trewin
Ealing Fields High School
Little Ealing Lane | Ealing | London | W5 4EJ | t: (0)20 3711 0022
e: [email protected] | w: www.ealingfields.org.uk
