A NORTH Yorkshire school has announced it will convert to an academy later this year.

Parents of pupils at Easingwold School received confirmation this week that Outwood Grange Academies Trust will become the school’s sponsors from September 1.

Neil Hawkins, chair of the school, sent a note to parents this week, and included a letter from Outwood Grange which stated the Academy Trust will “work quietly behind the scenes” for the rest of the current term to prepare for the transition of Easingwold School - which went into special measures last year - to academy status and avoid disruption for students and staff during the examination period.

Pete Dwyer, North Yorkshire County Council’s director of the children and young people’s services, said pupils would not be inconvenienced by the changes in the run up to the changeover.

He said: “Our priority remains for young people at Easingwold School to have access to high quality teaching and learning and we are confident that excellent progress is being made by staff and the current interim leadership team.

“We will continue to work closely with them and the sponsors to ensure through this period of further transition that this progress continues.”

In the letter sent to parents, the Outwood Grange Trust also paid tribute to Easingwold’s interim leadership team, which has had to implement a “rapid improvement plan” since the school was put in special measures in autumn 2016.

Executive headteacher Rob Pritchard, long-standing head of St John Fisher Roman Catholic High School in Harrogate, and the interim team will continue at the school until the end of the summer term, with the support of governors.