Choosing a secondary school - Devon based online headteacher says parents deserve more choice

As the deadline for selecting secondary school places draws near, the head teacher at a new online school, believes families deserve greater choice.

Devon based Lisa Boorman of Queen’s Online School thinks many children do not thrive in crowded classrooms and could achieve more in smaller, more flexible settings.

“Why don’t we offer, at the point where parents are choosing a secondary school, an additional option: high quality online education,” she asks.

“It is a credible, cost-equivalent alternative to traditional provision, and for many families it could make all the difference.

 “For some young people the sheer scale of mainstream schools is overwhelming,” she explains. “Add in neurodiversity and the result can be anxiety, depression and withdrawal. We need different doors into education.

“If those pupils were given access to interactive, live lessons led by highly qualified teachers, where they are genuinely seen, heard and valued, it could be life changing,” she added.

With more than 25 years in mainstream education, including as the head of a successful Devon secondary school, Ms Boorman is adamant that online learning could help many children, but only if local authorities are prepared to allocate budgets towards more flexible approaches designed to support hard-to-reach young people.

She’s convinced tens of thousands of children will continue to slip through the cracks of the current system unless it’s overhauled and she believes that for some pupils, the traditional classroom will never be the right environment. Online schools like Queen’s, Ms Boorman says, can give them a second chance at education and a future full of possibility.

 “It requires innovation and compassion. Local councils and government must recognise that online learning is not a second-best option and might genuinely be a lifeline. If we are serious about giving every child a fair start, then we need to fund and promote these alternatives as part of the mainstream system and give parents the choice as soon as they start looking at secondary schools for their child.”