The Government has given the green light for a Barrow primary school to join the South Cumbria Multi-Academy Trust.
The Department for Education has approved Ormsgill School and Nursery’s application to convert to an academy and join the trust.
The 200-pupil school will become a new member of the Furness College-led trust in September alongside Vickerstown School. They join Chetwynde School, which was the founding member of the trust when it launched last year.
Ormsgill School headteacher Mick Cull said: “We feel strongly that this is the right move for us. We get to keep everything that’s wonderful about our school and gain all the benefits of working closely with other forward-thinking schools. Joining such an innovative trust will enable us to take the learning experience we offer to the next level.
“We’ve had excellent support from the thrust to date both through the application and consultation processes and we are already seeing the benefits of being part of a wider organisation and all the expertise that brings.
“I am looking forward to the new academic term and working in partnership with the other member schools to continue to improve education across our whole community.”
Governors unanimously approved the decision to join the trust, which went through public consultation and was backed by staff and parents.
The trust’s executive headteacher and CEO, Professor Andrew Wren said there had been strong interest from schools across Furness and further afield in joining.
He added: “It’s fantastic to have such great schools on board within the first 12 months as a sound educational base for our trust and those that align so well with our ethos. We look forward to working together to improve opportunities in education for the young people in the area.”
