Teachers have voted against Ilkley Grammar School breaking away from local authority control and becoming an academy.

In ballots by three of the biggest teachers’ unions, 90 per cent of members working at the school have said “no” to the new status.

Officials are now urging governors to listen to teachers before making a final decision and appealing for others to make their concerns known.

A joint statement from the unions – ATL, NASUWT and NUT – says members are opposed to the school becoming “an independent private limited company”.

They say there is no evidence academy status raises academic performance, that the financial benefits are uncertain and that the system makes the school less accountable.

Staff would no longer be the subject of national agreements for pay and conditions and going ahead with academy status would be a “hit to staff morale and goodwill” in the quest to become an outstanding school, it adds.

The statement finishes by saying: “The governing body are the only people that vote on conversion but they have a responsibility to take the views of an overwhelming majority of the teaching staff and possibly a substantial part of the community on board – we hope they will do so.”

  • Read the full story in Thursday's T&A