GOVERNORS at the Quantock Academy are proposing a change of name for Danesfield Church of England School when it becomes part of a new academies’ trust this April, and have written to parents to ask their views.
They are proposing to call it the Quantock Church of England Middle School to mark the fresh start and provide a break from the ‘damaging’ headlines that come up when the school is searched for online.
From April, the multi-academy trust that the school is part of, the Quantock Academy, will be dissolved, and together with St Peter’s Church of England First School in Williton and Old Cleeve CofE First School in Washford, it will join with Minehead Middle and Minehead First Schools, to be part of the new West Somerset Academies Trust.
Governors and staff at the Quantock Academy discussed the name change last week and views were positive. Now parents who have any views about the proposed change are being asked to let the school office know by the end of this week.
Currently, if the school is searched for on Google, an incident comes up near the top of the page from 2014, when a teacher from Danesfield was suspended after parents complained that tape was used on children’s mouths.
The letter to parents explains that new signs and legal work will be needed from April, and this provides a cost free opportunity to make the name change.
It also says that there will be no sudden changes to the uniform, but when old stock is gone, the logo would reflect the new name.