A BRADFORD school that has "struggled for many years" and had a £5 million debt has officially been transferred to an Academy Trust.

Hanson School is now part of the Delta Academies Trust.

A spokesperson for Bradford Council said: “The Regional Schools Commissioner and the Department for Education have been working to transfer Hanson School to Academy status for some time and it officially transferred to Delta Academies Trust on July 1.

"We will continue to work with Delta Academies Trust and the Regional Schools Commissioner to support all the district’s pupils who attend Hanson as it builds on its recent improved performance.”

A spokesperson for Wakefield-based Delta Academies Trust said: "Hanson School has been without a sponsor for almost ten years and in that time has faced significant challenges, with low outcomes for children and high costs, which have made it difficult to find a sponsor.

"The Delta Trust Board has made significant resources available to support both the children and staff at the school.

"We have, for instance, almost immediately identified almost £1 million of investment to upgrade the ICT infrastructure in the school.

"Coupled with our outstanding track record of school improvement and staff development, we feel that the school has a bright future as part of the Delta family of schools."

The Department for Education made an order to convert Hanson School, on Swain House, into an academy in 2011 after a critical Ofsted report.

Since then a number of academy chains have stepped in to take on the school, but each arrangement had fallen through and Hanson remained a local authority school.

Although there has been improvement in the school’s performance, its deficit of around £5 million remained a major issue.

A Bradford Council said: "For a number of years the school had faced an ongoing annual cost of regular payments under the terms of a contract that was signed more than ten years ago with a third party.

"The school has now concluded its relationship with the third party and the issue has been resolved.

"This will put the school on a more sustainable financial footing for the future."

Delta has been negotiating about a Hanson transfer and in July last year, Delta's Chief Executive Paul Tarn told the T&A: “The school is not a prize to be argued over. It has struggled for many years.

"Delta has the capacity and expertise to help, and we are privileged and delighted to work with colleagues in the school and local authority to transform outcomes for the students."

 

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