Head teacher apologises for posting pictures of pupils on notice board showing their progress after students complained it would damage their mental health

• Pupils in Abbey College spotted a 'name and shame' board in a staff room 
• They complained the use of such a board would be damaging to their health 
• They said the board replaced one which had celebrated their achievements  
• Headmaster Andy Christoforou apologised for the use of the controversial board

A Cambridgeshire school which had a 'name and shame' board which pitted students against each other has apologised after it was claimed this could affect the mental health of its pupils. 

Abbey College in Ramsey, Cambridgeshire was trialing a new method of encouraging Sixth Form students to behave by introducing a 'rating system'. 

The board, which featured a photograph of each sixth form pupil, was erected in the school's staff room. 

However, according to the Hunts Post, a parent of one of the pupils lodged an official complaint asking for the board to be removed. 

One student said: 'The board was put up with opposition from some of the teachers and students, it is structured so it compared "effort" to "progress", students are then put into categories of high progress to low effort, and so on. 

'It is spread out on two boards meaning that people who are in the "low-low" quadrants are singled out, for all the sixth form to see. 

'It was eventually taken down, but it's the principle of comparing students effort. They have no idea the effort that students put in, clearly shown by the board who ranks one of the most active students as right at the bottom quadrant. It is so wrong and damaging to the mental health of some students.' 

The erection of the board follows a monitoring visit by Ofsted inspectors which took place in November 2019. 

In a report published on January 21, the inspectors complained that standards had slipped since the last full inspection in March 2018 when the school received a 'good' rating. 

According to Ofsted: 'Our short visits to observe pupils at work showed that behaviour in lessons is generally calm and purposeful. 

'Relations between staff and pupils are positive. The main barrier to learning is the poor attitudes shown by a small minority of pupils. When learning is well planned, pupils engage fully and show interest in their work. However, when learning fails to capture and retain their interest, some pupils ease off, stop paying attention and chat with others. 

'Questioning is not always targeted well enough to ensure that all learners contribute to class discussion. The lack of clear timescales to complete tasks leads to pupils working steadily rather than working hard.' 

According to pupils, the controversial board replaced one that celebrated the achievements of those attending the school. 

More than 70 pupils sent an open letter to the head teacher Andy Christoforou. 

The letter condemned the school over its 'name and shame' tactics and complained that the board's location was visible from the sixth form office. 

In response to the complaint, Mr Christoforou said: 'We apologise for the concern this noticeboard, which was displayed in one of our internal staff offices, has caused. We can confirm that it has since been removed from the wall. 

'Our sixth form consistently secures some of the strongest results in our region. We work hard to encourage an open and mature dialogue with our students to help them achieve the best possible results and want to celebrate their efforts.' 

Mr Christoforou said all schools had similar charts but normally they cannot be seen by the student body.