Hello and welcome to The Blackpool Lead.
I had a restful week away about an hour up the M6. I had sun, I had rain, I walked the dog a lot.
Firstly - a big thank you to all those who chose to sign-up as paid supporters in response to our midweek edition. It really cannot be stressed enough how important that is for our work to continue. You have my sincere and long-lasting gratitude.
Today’s report looks at a really quite damning Ofsted report given to Blackpool Skills Academy. They have been told, straightforwardly, they are not providing a safe space for students who are there.
Dramatic improvements are needed - but there should be some credit in that the founder has fronted up to the criticism and said that those improvements will happen. That might seem a small thing, but frankly, it doesn’t always happen.
Blackpool briefing
🩺 Blackpool Victoria Hospital is at the centre of a manslaughter investigation over four deaths on its stroke unit, according to reports.
A pre-inquest review held at the town hall was told that more than 20 police officers are looking at alleged corporate failings contributing to the death, ill-treatment or neglect of 10 patients who died in 2017 or 2018, The Gazette and Health Service Journal reported.
For four pensioners - Geoffrey Duckworth, 86, Peter Whittaker, 81, Joan Walker, and Margaret Hamilton, 86 - officers are examining a direct link between the care given to them and their later deaths.
The investigation was triggered in October 2023 by the Vic’s poison plot, which saw stroke unit nurses drugging patients to keep them sedated.
The subsequent police probe into the scandal also uncovered the brutal sexual assault and murder of grandmother Valerie Kneale, 75, whose killer has never been caught.
🚶 A zebra crossing is planned for a key road outside Blackpool Victoria Hospital.
The traffic measure is intended to help pedestrians heading across Whinpark Avenue from one of the Vic’s car parks safely reach the main building, which houses the busy A&E department and several others.
It will be installed by the council after a request by hospital chiefs.
🚄 Rail passengers hoping for a direct Blackpool to London service have seen their hopes stay firmly on the platform.
Avanti West Coast had wanted to run extra Blackpool-London Euston services but the regulator said the plans would likely lead to more cancellations and delays for passengers.
According to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), the proposals would have eaten too much into existing gaps in the timetable which are needed to provide space for trains to recover when disruption occurs.
🎇 Saturday’s World Fireworks Championships were cancelled due to the predicted wind speed and direction making it unsafe for the event to go ahead, Blackpool Council said.
They are hopeful that they will be able to find another date in the near future - though this is far from confirmed.
They said in a statement: “Following close monitoring throughout the week, the predicted wind speed and direction would make it unsafe for the event to go ahead.
“We know this will be disappointing for everyone who was planning to attend, however the safety of our fireworks teams and spectators must come first.
“We will review whether there may be an opportunity for the event to take place at a future date and will provide updates if appropriate.”
Blackpool Skills Academy told it is unsafe due to poor safety checks during staff recruitment
By Luke Beardsworth
A school in Blackpool that focuses on specialist alternative provision for students who have had a disrupted education has been told it is not safe for pupils - in part because the school does not carry out rigorous recruitment checks on staff.
Blackpool Skills Academy, based at Stanley House, says it aims to offer students a fresh start through smaller class sizes and personalised support.
But its very first inspection by Ofsted says that it needs to improve urgently in areas such as attendance and behaviour, inclusion and leadership and governance. Blackpool Skills Academy says it has already started to make those improvements.
The school boasts on its website that staff are experienced in supporting students with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) or who have Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
But the inspection report rubbishes that description and says the school is unable to meet the needs of those pupils.
It reads: “The school has limited expertise to spot the signs that pupils may have additional or unidentified needs. This is especially true for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
“Leaders have provided staff with very limited training and meaningful guidance on the types and indicators of SEND. Consequently, when some pupils show particular behaviours that are suggestive of an unmet need, staff have limited expertise and, therefore, do not explore these signs further.”
It adds that the school fails to have a secure insight into the progress of disadvantaged pupils make from their respective starting points - and any funding secured is described as not making a ‘substantive difference’.
Pupils who join Blackpool Skills Academy often do so with significant behaviour issues and social, emotional and mental health needs.
The school has been the subject of BBC News pieces which talk about its ability to ‘transform’ lives for pupils.
But despite that, the school is unable to keep an accurate register of the pupils’ attendance records. The report describes these as often recorded incorrectly.