Thursday 28 June 2007

assembly

We started this morning with a talk given by nigel lacey, the pastor of hope baptist church e7. He spoke to us about wholeheartedly working at whatever our hands find to do. He asked us to think of examples of people in the bible who reluctantly obeyed god and we came up with moses, jonah and gideon.
Mr lacey encouraged us to know that god really is pleased with those who wholeheartedly serve him.
Hear the 23 minute talk here.

Wednesday 27 June 2007

Give us favour in their eyes

There are a number of people who are considering our tiny Academy (www.TyndaleAcademy.net) at this time and we pray for favour in the eyes of them all.

The first of those considering us is a litigation lawyer who is consulting a colleague to see whether she feels we are able to lay our case for damages before a small claims court. Our aim in doing this would be to have the actions of the DfES, which have been so damaging to us, rehearsed in public. We feel this might cause them to proceed more cautiously in what has become for them an embarrassing, thorny and difficult case that has lasted 4 years.

There are also several parents who requested prospectuses who will be thinking about their children's future schooling. We hope that our increase in hours and reduction in fees will cause them to send their children along in September. We have had reasonable "school" rolls in the past but due to the bullying of the DfES are at a very low ebb at the moment.

The trustees of the Cedar Educational Trust are considering our request that they take over the Tyndale Academy in order that we be better placed to secure funding from grant making bodies. We live in a borough of over 200,000 people with only two sizeable independent schools (of over 100 children). We believe that there are great opportunities to do a work for Christ in the education of children in the area.

Our MP Stephen Timms, a cabinet minister, is sending a letter on our behalf to the Secretary of State for Education. This letter calls for a meeting with a minister to clarify the Department's intentions with regard to the Academy. Stephen's office has helpfully dealt with our case over the last year and a half.

The Information Commissioner is considering our appeal for the release of information which the DfES has refused to release to us. We have had over a hundred pieces of correspondence between the Department, OFSTED and Newham Local Authority which we believe shows clear evidence of maladministration. We know that last year there were at least 100 further pieces of correspondence and notes about our case. We are asking the Information Commissioner for access to these under the Freedom of Information Act.

We ask the Lord God to grant us favour in the eyes of all of those who are considering us.