The derelict Norwich academy that embodies Tories' education record

My old school was once a comprehensive, famed for its performing arts programme. Then it was turned into an academy - and now, it's facing demolition. Seems apt.

Photo: Fred Garratt-Stanley

The Hewett Academy's old South Site looks post-apocalyptic. Weeds creep up the dirty windows, debris scatters the dusty floors, and in one science laboratory, a pool of stagnant water has formed due to a leaky pipe. This large area, known as Upper School to older pupils, was previously packed with well-equipped classrooms, science labs, halls, and common rooms, comprising roughly one-third of the entire school. It was abandoned years ago, due to dwindling pupil numbers. Soon, the whole site will be demolished.

When the Norwich-based secondary school opened its doors to visitors on Saturday 9th November, over 2,000 ex-pupils and locals streamed in for a nostalgic final tour. I was one of them: w hen I first heard about the tearing down of buildings where I spent thousands of hours during my most formative years, I felt a pang of loss. I've lived in London for over seven years and have only kept track of my old school's fortunes from a distance; but immediately, I felt compelled to jump on a train and soak it all up, one last time.

Hewett was once one of the country's largest state comprehensives, with 3,000 people attending at its peak, and a glowing reputation for the performing arts developing over the years. This was encapsulated by the previously state-of-the-art music block and the impressive Walter Roy Theatre (named after a transformative former headteacher, Dr Walter Roy). Speaking to people who experienced Hewett's glory days, there's a clear sense of pride.

"A lot of people were very proud of going to one of the greatest schools in the country," says Melita Morgan, who attended the school in the 1980s and organised the recent open day, after two years of tireless work. "This was our last chance to walk those corridors, and I wanted to give the school a good, respectful send-off. But I don't think the academy would've organised [the open day] themselves. They were quite surprised at how much the history meant to people."

This isn't a massive shock; in recent years, those controlling Hewett have attempted to reinvent the school in their image. Now, having received funding from the government's school rebuilding programme (an investment project designed to renovate and rebuild over 500 schools and sixth-form colleges), the majority of the site — large parts of which have become derelict — is set for demolition. Only the theatre and clocktower in the school's centre will remain, and the destroyed buildings will be replaced with a new-look Inspiration Trust academy.

The marketisation of education

In May 2010, there were 203 academies in England. By 2013, there were 3,304, and by the 2015 election, over half of the country's secondary schools were academies. These schools are defined as "state-funded, non-fee-paying schools in England, independent of local authorities" and reflect a market-driven focus on targets and goals, often at the expense of welfare. There is a widespread feeling that many of the UK's academy chains have their priorities wrong, with The Lead recently reporting that "public funding is being diverted from the classroom into senior executive salaries, with more than 40 academy trust CEOs on salaries of more than £200,000, while spending per pupil has in some plummeted to £4."

The academies experiment — driven by the misguided Tory ideology that corporate structures can help increase efficiency and performance in education — has failed pupils, parents, and teachers. Today, one in three teachers leave their post within five years of qualifying, and those who stay are under ever-increasing strain.

"The expectations placed on teachers are just too much," says Penelope*, a teacher at a high-attaining secondary comprehensive in south London. "The hours are mad, the stress is too much, the responsibility is too much, being spoken to like shit is too much. We've got people that have the potential to be really good but the support just isn't there."

The current crisis is a direct result of government austerity. Earlier this year, UNISON's Head of Education Mike Short said "Schools have been grappling with insufficient funding ever since 2010… a pupil who started school in 2010 will have lost out on an average of £5,384 of funded education and support as a result of budget cuts." In a line reminiscent of the circumstances around of Hewett’s academisation, he added: "the government's abandonment of investment in school buildings means pupils and staff are learning and working in unsafe buildings."

Meanwhile, senior leadership team salaries have shot up and trusts have boosted their profits by using fluid pay scales and employing lower-earning supply teachers. The Harris Federation alone has accumulated reserves of £33 million. The marketisation of education and under-funding of state schools — exemplified by the story of the Hewett Academy — has created a crisis.

Hewett's decline

"The majority of people I knew were very unhappy when we heard the news that Hewett was going to turn into an academy," reflects Shifat Khan, a friend and former classmate of mine. This news broke in 2015, when Hewett was the only council-run secondary school left in Norwich, and protests involving hundreds of local people quickly erupted. The fact that 80% of people consulted were against the proposals was ignored, while the news that the academy would be run by Inspiration Trust (founded by Tory donor Theodore Agnew) brought fresh anger from parents, pupils, and local Labour MP Clive Lewis. "What was the point of holding a consultation and ignoring the result simply because it wasn't the answer the Government and the Inspiration Trust wanted?" he asked in one statement.

After taking control, the Inspiration Trust focused on boosting exam results and targeting core subjects, often at the expense of creative disciplines. I was lucky enough to get out before much of the damage was inflicted. When the academisation was forced through in September 2015, I was in my final year at the school. I was still able to access its excellent music department, rehearsing with bands and recording projects in the impressive studio space before the music block was stripped out and reduced to one small room holding a few knackered guitars that had been there for decades.

I was also still able to learn from an English Literature teacher whose skill and knowledge surpassed some of my university lecturers, before the majority of the school's most talented arts and humanities teachers departed, feeling undervalued and under-supported. This is what happens to academies: their uniqueness is ripped away, and nurturing students with more creative interests becomes less of a priority.

"I observed a massive decline in the school," says Shifat. "I remember there were about three new biology teachers in the span of three months, which obviously isn't great, and I remember them being not very responsive to the students. I felt like they were going through the motions. The school seemed to put all their time into the people they knew would do well, but the ones who were struggling and needed more help didn't get the help they needed. There's a reason why a lot of people left Hewett to go to other sixth forms after it turned into an academy."

When I joined the school in 2009, roughly 1,000 pupils attended; by May 2024, that number had halved to just 421 pupils, with poor exam results, underwhelming Ofsted performances and forced academisation reducing intake year on year. But it's important to note that before Inspiration Trust came along, Hewett was far from perfect. Several chaotic episodes occurred during my time there, including a fake bomb threat, the theft of a hamster from the nearby Pets At Home, a sudden flooding caused by a stolen copper pipe in West Site, and a contentious 'special measures' Ofsted report that accelerated the academisation process. It was an eventful place.

Across Norwich, pupils, parents, and teachers at better-resourced and higher-attaining schools often looked down their noses at Hewett. The school's location in Lakenham, one of the city's poorest areas, undeniably contributed to this reputation. So after David Cameron's Coalition government took office in 2010 and embarked on sweeping changes to education, schools like Hewett were seen as ripe for reform. And they ended up paying the price for the Tories' failed education experiment.

Labour's plans for the schools crisis

Discussions surrounding the new Labour government's approach to education have often centred around their headline pledge to scrap VAT exemptions for private schools. The backlash against this proposal, affecting schools that only 6% of the UK's children attend, has been overblown, and has distracted from the new administration's other education policies. Although in truth, there isn't much else of substance to speak of.

Keir Starmer's government claims that teacher recruitment is a key concern; they've committed to recruiting 6,500 new teachers, a pledge that doesn't get close to addressing the dual recruitment and retention crisis. The National Education Union (NEU) suggests this figure is 26,500 short of what's required to plug the gaps. According to Penelope, "It doesn't scratch the surface. I don't think it'll make a single difference to our day-to-day because the problem isn't getting people into teaching, the problem is keeping them in teaching. The priority should be looking at retaining teachers."

Asked about Labour's other education proposals, she added: "Ending single-word Ofsted and just having report cards makes little difference. People will always strive for the best whether it's for smaller categories or one final word." This decision does at least suggest a less punitive, stress-inducing approach, and coupled with increased funding (October's Budget announced a £2.3 billion spending increase designed to get education spending back to 2010 levels), it's a step in the right direction. But it will take a lot more to fix the crisis.

While Jeremy Corbyn's Labour planned to bring academies back into local authority control, Starmer's administration — far more closely aligned with the private sector — appears committed to maintaining the marketised education system they've inherited. If his government genuinely improves the state of our schools, even anti-academy voices will grudgingly accept this attitude. Making teaching more appealing will be key, and the government's decision to increase teacher pay by 5.5% in line with independent recommendations is welcome. But the chaos on the ground remains.

On 22nd November, former NEU general secretary Dr Mary Bousted launched the Teaching Commission, an NEU-funded commission exploring how teaching can become an attractive and sustainable profession again, with in-depth analysis of workload, working cultures, and pay. Labour must listen closely to the commission's findings. The new government often talks about how they will be judged on the practical improvements made to people's lives over the next five years. And if there aren't visible improvements at schools like the Hewett Academy, Starmer may end up paying at the ballot box.

Regardless of what the future holds for Hewett, former pupils remain keenly interested in the school's trajectory. "I'm very passionate about that school and its future, because of its rich history," says Melita. "I'm passionate about making sure all the archives are saved and looked after. And the school has promised I can be involved in a grand reunion when it reopens."

Inspiration Trust may think they can wipe the slate clean with this rebuild, but significant emotional ties continue to bind the people of Norwich to this unglamorous state comprehensive. We each associate the school with our own stories — some good, some bad — but Hewett has impacted far too many lives for people to just stop caring.