Education expert hits out at Eton Star College project

A local education expert revealed he quit his post as a parish councillor over ‘serious concerns’ about the way a deal to create an Eton-backed school in Oldham is being handled.

Dominic Wall, who was formerly a Labour representative at Saddleworth Parish Council, has slammed the government and council over decisions made ‘behind closed doors’.

The Eton Star Academy is a council-backed scheme to bring a new sixth form to Oldham town centre to provide ‘a first class education to disadvantaged kids’. The £58k-a-year boarding school Eton College will provide a £1m kickstarter investment, with the Star Academies Trust supporting the sixth form’s management.

The project has been billed as a ‘game changer’ to help talented local kids get into top universities around the world. Though the entry criteria is yet to be released, Eton and Star heads have previously pledged to privilege kids in care, on free school meals, or those who would be the first in their families to go to university.

After years of drumming up support, the project looked in jeopardy when the Labour’s new Department of Education called in the project for a ‘value for money’ review that took almost a year. Then, the government suddenly and unceremoniously approved the project – buried in an announcement listing of hundreds of new SEND schools.

Now the council is making moves to secure a land transfer to Eton and Star, which would see the outdoor Tommyfield Market freed up for construction of the new school.

But Wall, Chair of the Trustees at Pinnacle Learning Trust, which runs Hathershaw College and Oldham Sixth Form, argues the plans ‘don’t stack up’.
“It hasn’t gone through any of the normal consultation processes in government, it’s just been approved,” Wall said. “It doesn’t have a financial model that stacks up if you use the DfE’s own methodology. It’s not even clear what criteria the government has used to approve it.”

Eton Star Oldham was one of three similar projects, with another in Dudley previously approved, but a very similar project in Middlesborough scrapped at the same time as the Oldham branch was approved. DfE has not provided clarification on what criteria was used to decide which schools were ‘viable’.

And Wall worries that with Oldham’s dipping birth rate, there soon won’t be a need for an additional college in the town centre. So the new college would end up ‘skimming off the very talented from disadvantaged areas’, causing knock-on impacts for funding and school places at existing provisions.

“The truth is, there isn’t a fag paper of difference between Eton and Oldham sixth Form in terms of their performance on the government’s own progress measures,” he said. “If you take all of the sixth form provisions across Oldham, it’s actually better than Eton’s.

“I don’t think it’s been a fair and democratic process because the impact on other providers has not been taken into account. We’re sure about that because [the Department for Education] would have had to ask us, and they didn’t.”

The reason Wall has quit his political post is because of the way council leadership has handled the project, he says. The project was started under the supervision of former CEO Harry Catherall – who also had a role on the board of trustees with Star Academies.

This is publicly registered on Star Academies’ governance members website, and has been widely circulated on social media. Wall doesn’t suggest any wrongdoing but argues there was ‘not enough transparency’ about Catherall’s connection with the board, with the council never providing a public clarification about his relationship, thereby undermining public trust.

“The leader of the council Arooj Shah has persistently ignored all concerns raised,” he added. “Including wise voices within her own party advising her that the long-term impact of this project will likely be very negative. It’s been unreasonable and high-handed.”

In off-the-record conversations, a number of Oldham-linked Labour politicians have confirmed concerns were previously voiced by members, but have never been publicly discussed.

Oldham Council has denied Wall’s assertions, though they did not provide a comment. A spokesperson noted that recent figures highlight ‘a clear gap’ in Oldham’s education statistics compared to high-achieving schools such as Geenhead, Loreto and Xaverian – who achieve between 15 to 22 per cent AAB or higher, compared to 10.5pc at Oldham Sixth Form College.

However, it’s worth noting Oldham Sixth Form College is a non-selective college. Around a third of students in comparable selective secondary schools in Oldham such as Blue Coats achieved A* grades – similar to other high-achieving schools across the region.
In a recent statement about the new school, council leader Arooj Shah said: ”

“Eton Star Oldham is about raising aspirations and ensuring that talent and potential are recognised wherever they are found. I am particularly proud that this project will open doors for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, giving them access to opportunities that can truly change lives.”

The council has also previously cited the economic and reputational benefits of attracting big names like Eton to the town.
The Department for Education did not respond to a request for comment.

Eton and Star Academies did not wish to comment.