Principal to leave Peterborough special school

Laura Ives, principal at Medeshamstede Academy in Reeves Way, has confirmed she is leaving the academy. She has recently been absent from the school for personal reasons.

A spokesperson for the Academy, said: “Due to personal reasons, our Principal has decided to leave the Academy. The Trust would like to thank her for her services and wish her well for the future.

“The recruitment process for a new Principal is now underway. In the interim period, we are delighted to say the Trust has appointed an Interim Principal who will join us officially after the half term break on Monday 1st November and will be working closely with our Deputy Principals to continue to make the Academy a great place to learn.

“We very much welcome parental participation in the recruitment process for a permanent Principal and are in process of setting up a ‘parent panel’ to help support the interview stage. We look forward to working closely with our Academy community to make an appointment soon.”

Recently a number of parents of pupils at the school - which specialises in teaching youngsters with autism, have contacted the Peterborough Telegraph with concerns about the school, including that pupils had left the school site during the day.

Earlier this month, a spokesman for the Greenwood Academy Trust, which runs the school, said: ““The health, safety and wellbeing of our pupils is our absolute priority.

“As an Academy, we take our duty of care extremely seriously and every decision is made with the best interests of our entire community in mind.

“Due to a number of staff who are currently self-isolating, in line with the latest government advice and in consultation with Public Health England, we have moved some of our key stage 4 provision to remote learning due to staffing shortages.

“However, the rest of the Academy remains open for on-site provision.

“We appreciate this continues to be a challenging time for our Academy community and remain in regular contact with our affected pupils, parents and staff to facilitate remote learning and provide reassurance and up-to-date information.

“In regards to a recent unrelated behaviour incident that occurred off-site, we are continuing to work closely with the families of the pupils involved and relevant external authorities to ensure appropriate measures are taken and the necessary support is in place.

“We would always encourage anyone with concerns to contact the Academy directly so that we can provide appropriate support if necessary.”

MORE: Peterborough special school issues statement as a number of staff self isolate