Trust has let school down, says Ofsted

Ofsted has told an education trust which runs a secondary school previously rated "inadequate" it "let the school down".

A monitoring inspection of West Lakes Academy, in Egremont, Cumbria, found "significant further work" was needed by leaders to remove its special measures classification.

The inspector criticised the Changing Lives Learning Trust (CLLT) for failing to provide "meaningful support" to staff and making financial decisions which meant the school was unable to hire teachers to fill vacancies.

A spokesperson for the school accepted the findings in full and said "pupils and their families are entitled to better".

The latest report was based on a monitoring inspection carried out on 23 June and it was the first since the school was judged to require special measures in June 2025.

The inspection found the trust had "let this school down" and not held the school to account for the decline in the quality of education pupils receive.

Poor behaviour disrupted learning more than in the past because the trust had not helped leaders to establish a consistent approach to tackling the "deep-rooted issue", the inspector said.

The school is in the process of being transferred from the CLLT to the Cumbria Education Trust.

The inspector did praise the efforts of school leaders who "have acted with integrity and drive" despite not having the correct support.

Headteacher Stephen Grant said it was "a hard report to read" and staff were working to improve the priorities the inspector identified.

Interim CEO of CLLT David Dennis said it accepted the inspector's findings.

"In June we put in place a formal support agreement with Cumbria Education Trust, and we are working with the Department for Education on the transfer of West Lakes Academy to Cumbria Education Trust.

"Our priority is that this transition is orderly and that pupils and staff feel no disruption from it."

The inspector said the recent support from the Cumbria Education Trust "is sharply focused on the right actions to secure much-needed improvement" but there is much to be done.

Whitehaven and Workington's Labour MP Josh Macalister said he had been closely monitoring the situation and "strongly supported" the move to transfer the school to the Cumbria Education Trust later this year.

He said: "Every child in West Cumbria deserves a brilliant education, wherever they live and whichever school they attend."

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