Secondary like military school, parents claim

PUPILS at a Bristol secondary school are being ordered to smile when a teacher asks, march in silent rows and line up for equipment inspection up to five times a day, furious parents said.

The new rules at Blaise High School have already prompted a protest by parents outside the school gates, with many saying they are looking for alternative places for their children.

Blaise High School, which changed its name from Henbury School in 2018, already had double the number of student suspensions than any other in Bristol, but new rules applied at the start of this year have led to parents describing it as “a military school”. It is run by the Greenshaw Learning Trust.

It is understood all schools in the Greenshaw group have imposed the new sets of rules, and there have already been protests at other schools, including one in Plymouth.

On Monday, a group of parents staged a protest and had a brief conversation with Blaise High School’s new headteacher, Nat Nabarro.

Rules include pupils being given detention or time in isolation for resting their chin on their hand during a lesson, or not properly marching in a straight line with what the school calls “pace and purpose”.

The “pace and purpose” rule sees students “walking in a straight line, quickly and with no gaps between anyone”.

During lessons, the students are expected to be a “quality audience” – all pens down, sitting up straight and to attention with no talking, no moving, no turning around. The students must face forward at all times and are not allowed to lean their heads on their hands or put their hand on their face during lessons.

The students must also attend “roll call” several times a day – three times for Years 7 to 10 and five times for Year 11s.

This involves standing silently in line while every student’s equipment and uniform is inspected. The students must offer up their books, and must have a specific see-through long pencil case.

Students have been given what are known as RFL cards – referral cards – which must be shown if a teacher asks for it. The students are given negative points on their cards for many different things like not smiling when asked to by teachers, or not replying properly when a teacher says “good morning”.

Uniform rules have also been tightened – all students must now wear the regulation green socks.

And at lunchtime, students must only eat if they are sitting down, and lunchtime itself has been restricted to half an hour, to allow time for the roll calls.

One parent of a Year 11 student said her daughter now wants to leave. “Even though it is a key year, with her GCSEs coming up, she has had enough already. It’s not any one particular rule, it’s just like it’s a military school now,” she said.

“They march everywhere in silence, they can’t interact with their friends in a natural way, they are always terrified of not doing something right and getting a detention or suspension”.

As Henbury School, Ofsted rated the school “inadequate” back in 2018, but Ofsted inspectors are yet to return for a follow-up.

The uniform rules have also been criticised by another parent. “They might have changed the name from Henbury to Blaise High, but it’s still the same catchment area, and people are struggling to afford to pay their bills, let alone buy special green socks,” she said.

Similar rules are being imposed in other Greenshaw Learning Trust schools across the country. The multi-academy trust has 21 schools across the south of England, including in Gloucestershire, Bristol, and three in Plymouth.

In a statement, Will Smith, the CEO of the Greenshaw Learning Trust, said: “Our expectation is that all students present themselves in line with school policies and Blaise High School offers support to all parents and students to do this.

“Students’ safety and well-being are the school’s top priority and if any students or parents have any concerns they should contact the school directly,” he added.