The Government has dropped its plans to take a primary school out of councils control.

William Torbitt Primary School in Ilford was ordered to become an academy after it received education watchdog Ofsted‘s lowest ‘inadequate’ rating after an inspection in June 2018.

If turned into an academy, the school would have been funded by central government, but run without input from the council.

But following support from Redbridge Council as well as from staff from other primary schools in the community, William Torbitt received a ‘good’ rating – the second highest – in its most recent inspection in January 2019.

Because of the rapid improvement, the Government has decided to lift the threat of academisation and instead leave the school in local authority control.

Councillors are pushing hard to keep Redbridge’s schools under local authority control.

The Catholic Church’s Brentwood Diocese wants to turn Our Lady of Lourdes Primary School in Wanstead into an academy, but the council is fighting this.

Cllr Paul Donovan, of Wanstead Village ward, said: “There has already been one success to report with the academy order issued against William Torbitt school being reversed.

“The efforts of staff, parents and the local authority in pressing for reversal of the academisation order have now proved successful.

“So the academisation process can be reversed.”