Member Article

Academy conversion allows school to shape its future

A special school in Saltburn-by-the-Sea now plans to ‘shape its own future’ following its conversion to Academy status.

Kilton Thorpe School in Brotton, which teaches 141 students with learning difficulties or special educational needs, became Kilton Thorpe Specialist Academy on 1st December 2012. The school’s Governors, Head Teacher Kevin Thompson and Business Manager Brenda Mccabe worked closely with Samuel Phillips Law Firm to secure the conversion.

Mr Thompson said: “This conversion is vitally important to the school. We are a team of people passionate about Kilton Thorpe and its pupils, and we are now responsible for its future. Together with the school’s Trustees, we can now ensure the required investment is found and that this school is here for many more years to educate and support these children and young people, and their families.”

Ian Gibson, a specialist in Academy conversions and commercial law with Samuel Phillips Law Firm, has worked with Kilton Thorpe to negotiate the lease of the land from the Local Authority and to complete all elements of the conversion. He commented: “It has been a privilege to work with a school that does such a fantastic job, each and every day. Its resources are now in the hands of the Trustees, Governors and staff, all of whom have a passion for what they do and the differences they can make in the lives of these children and young people. I look forward to keeping in touch with KTS Academy, and am sure that they will use the momentum gained from the Academy conversion to develop and go on to do bigger and better things for the pupils, with the freedom and independence to determine their own future.”

Following a tender process, Mr Thompson chose to work with Samuel Phillips Law Firm because of the firm’s understanding of the conversion process and its personable approach. He commented: “We have worked closely together for a number of months and we have developed a great trust in the Samuel Phillips team. A strong moral purpose is the ‘backbone’ of our school, and we felt Samuel Phillips’ staff demonstrated this quality too. We’ve been kept up to date with the process throughout, and each member of the Samuel Phillips team impressed with their commitment to our Academy conversion.”

Samuel Phillips offers a comprehensive range of legal services to business and private clients. For any further information, please see www.samuelphillips.co.uk.

KTS Academy works closely with the Local Education Authority, and the LEA will continue to offer places to the Academy on its behalf. For more information about KTS Academy, visit www.ktsacademy.org.uk. The school, which welcomes pupils from age 3 to 19, was judged ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted in November 2011.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Hignett, i2i Business Solutions .