A SERIES of damning Ofsted reports have cast doubt over the future of some of Tynedale’s newly-created primary schools.

Some parents have openly questioned whether Whitfield Primary School will survive after six highly critical inspections in the space of less than two years.

The school was placed in special measures by Ofsted in February 2014, and recommendations were made on how it could improve.

But five further inspections have failed to impress inspectors, who have seen no signs of meaningful improvement to enable it to come out of special measures.

The latest inspection, earlier this month, concluded the situation was unacceptable and thatpupils’ life chances were being put at a disadvantage. It said Northumberland County Council had failed to provide robust support.

Whitfield was one of four primaries created in the West Tynedale Federation September 2013, in the wake of the closure of Allendale Middle School.

Another of the primaries, Herdley Bank in Coanwood, is set to close next year. And last week Greenhead was judged to require improvement by Ofsted.

The challenges facing the education system in the southern and western areas of Tynedale have been compounded by the fact that Haltwhistle Community Campus is in special measures; as is Haydon Bridge High School which is destined to become an academy next year.

Coun. Robert Arckless, cabinet member for children’s services at the county council, said: “I can understand the concerns about recent Ofsted reports, and we have to work with schools and governors to find sustainable options because all of our schools are important to their respective communities.”

He defended the decision by the council to close Allendale Middle and press ahead with the creation of primary schools in its place.

“If one school closes, it can have a devastating knock-on effect for neighbouring schools and communities. But when the first schools became primaries, it gave them a chance.

“It‘s not about structures. It’s fragmented, and we have a very diverse mixture of schools here. But what works in one community might be very different in another.

“Of course, it has been difficult for the rural primary schools. There is a lot of external scrutiny on them.”

Although the council looks set to press ahead with a switch to two-tier education in the Alnwick area, with the proposed closure of four middle schools, Coun. Arckless insisted there were no plans to extend the experiment.

He stressed that the current situation was a far cry from 2004, when the local authority launched its failed ‘Putting the Learner First’ proposals for a two-tier system across Northumberland.

“We are in a very different place now, and we need to find a way forward for education in our towns and villages which is not one size fits all.”