A CRUCIAL partnership which helped raise standards at a North Yorkshire school is about to come to a successful conclusion.
Northallerton College invited Risedale Sports and Community College, Catterick, to join its ranks in 2009.
Since then the Northallerton and Catterick Federation has seen Risedale emerge from special measures to be ranked good by Ofsted last year thanks to the sharing of expertise, ethos and learning culture.
From April 1 Northallerton School and Sixth Form College, as it is now known, and Risedale Sports and Community College will go their separate ways to pursue different goals at a time of sweeping changes in education.
Northallerton School and Sixth Form College head teacher Chris Byrne said: “This is very much part of the natural evolution of both schools.
“We were delighted to support Risedale in its hour of need but now it is rated good the governors and leadership teams agree the partnership has run it course, though the links we have forged over the years will remain useful.”
Mr Byrne added that Risedale Sports and Community College was a unique school facing an exciting future serving the needs of a garrison town that was experiencing massive growth.
“For us this provides the opportunity to explore different collaborations that would better suit the young people of Northallerton and the surrounding villages,” he said.
Plans for a reconfiguration have already been drawn up in Northallerton. From September the bulk of students will move to the ‘college site’ in Grammar School Lane leaving the former Allertonshire School as a Year 7 centre to aid the transition from primary to secondary education.
“This is about improving the quality of our provision and focussing our resources more effectively,” said Mr Byrne. “This will provide a more consistent experience for our young people.
“The dedicated Year 7 team will be able to bridge the gap better between Key Stages 2 and 3 and we are working hard with our feeder primary schools to avoid any stall in children’s education and learning experience.”