A second secondary school under the same trust has been rated “inadequate” by Ofsted in less than two weeks.

Greenacre Academy in Walderslade, which shares a site with Walderslade Girls’ School, has just received a damning report from the independent education regulators.

Both are under the Skills for Life Academies Trust and have a joint sixth form.

WGS now has a new head teacher and is being supported another Trust and the Department for Education.

Inspectors who visited Greenacre shortly afterwards found that pupils’ disrespectful behaviour and derogatory language had become “normalised”.

They were also critical of the school’s “alternative curriculum” which they say does not enable students to learn adequate knowledge and skills.

The report said: “Pupils study the same topics as their peers but not in sufficient depth.”

It highlighted absenteeism, particularly among sixth formers, saying: “Leaders have not put in place effective processes to check which pupils need additional support to attend school.”

‘We fully believe this is a chapter in the school’s life and does not define us...’

Shelly Bridger, Greenacre’s head, said in a letter to parents the school was “devastated” with the outcome, but added, that although there were serious concerns, Ofsted believed issues could be resolved.

Mrs Bridger said: “We want to reassure you that this rating was made at a specific time and we are determined to move the school forward rapidly to make the necessary improvements.”

Working with Andrew Minchin, the chief executive of Beyond Schools Trust, an action plan has been drawn up, which includes removing parts of the “alternative curriculum” ensuring all students have access to the same qualifications.

Parents have been made aware of the bad language and been asked to monitor this at home and staff have been told to crack down on what Ofsted describe as “banter” in the school.

The head said there had been changes surrounding senior leadership and, while recruitment had proved a challenge, the academy will be fully staffed by September.

Mrs Bridger said: “We fully believe this is a chapter in the school’s life and does not define us.

“We are determined to move forward with the pace and urgency that it requires and provide the best education possible for our students.

“I know this letter and report will have been difficult for you to read and digest.

“It is now time that we move forward together and make the necessary improvements quickly and with determination.”

In Greenacre’s last Ofsted, in May 2018, it was rated “good”.