Parents and former pupils at schools run by a controversial multi-academy trust have raised concerns that it is still in place as the new school year begins.
In July, the Athena Learning Trust, which runs nine schools across Devon and Cornwall, announced it would dissolve and transfer its schools to other organisations. The move came after parents complained about the trust's strict disciplinary measures, which they said had a detrimental impact on pupils' education and mental health.
The trust said the transfer processes were under way in partnership with the Department for Education and that "feedback" had informed changes that would be in place from September.
Athena Learning Trust runs three secondary schools and three primary schools in Cornwall and three secondary schools in Devon.
At Launceston College, three students who have just collected their A-level results and are heading to Oxbridge wrote an open letter to the school and the Athena Learning Trust. Stamatis Mavroudi-Tayler, Bere Wendriner and Archie Gough said their school had changed over four years and "the goals pursued by the college and the trust have substantially diverged from the interests of pupils, parents/carers, staff and the wider community".
The trio wrote: "The trust has announced that it will dissolve… we believe that this does not guarantee any material change for the College community… a fundamental change in culture and approach is necessary."
They argued for the college to drop zero-tolerance policies and a sanction to every breach of a rule "regardless of how serious it was or the history and needs of the pupil".
Mark Blackman, interim leader at Athena Learning Trust, answered with a letter detailing how since the end of May "there has been considerable work…reviewing in-class strategy and the wider use of behaviour approaches… across the Trust we have seen significant changes in the need for sanctions and the use of these has fallen."
Cornwall councillor James Ball said there had been conversations going on through the summer about Camborne Science and International Academy, but some parents he was speaking to had "anxiety" as the new school year starts with the Athena Learning Trust still in place.
"I think some parents thought that we might have been able to move more quickly, but unfortunately it's such a complex situation and we're waiting for the Department for Education to appoint the new trust," he
New School Year Brings Anxiety as Athena Trust Stays