A BRADFORD school has been placed in special measures after an Ofsted inspection found it to be inadequate in every category.

In a damning report, Oasis Academy Lister Park was criticised for its poor exam results, inadequate sixth form, weak governance and "serious divisions" in its former senior leadership.

The newly appointed principal has now written to parents to promise he and his team will do "everything humanly possible" to turn things around.

The Manningham school was given a highly critical judgement by Ofsted inspectors after a visit last month - the first since it became an academy.

Oasis Community Learning began running the school, formerly known as Challenge College, in 2013. It currently has 960 pupils, including 200 in its sixth form.

The group said that it was aware of issues at the academy, and had made "significant changes" to the senior management before the inspection, including installing a new executive principal - Philip Beaumont.

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Ofsted said the inspection was held after they received a complaint raising "serious concerns" about the school.

The report says sixth form achievement was low, with just one in 10 students re-sitting their English and Maths exams getting higher than a C, harming their ability to move on to higher education.

On leadership the report says: "Serious divisions within senior leadership have led to considerable turbulence. As a result, five senior leaders have left the academy during the last year.

"Governance is ineffective. A minority of students show a lack of respect for members of staff. Too many students continue to take extended absences.

"The proportion of students attaining five of more GCSE grades was significantly below the national average."

One positive of the report is that: "The academy successfully promotes respect and tolerance for different faiths and cultures and tackles head on the risks posed by radicalisation and extremism."

Ofsted suggests the school carry out an external review of governance and how it uses pupil premium money.

A letter sent by Mr Beaumont to parents after the report was published said: "I can assure you we are doing everything humanly possible to ensure the best outcomes for your children."

A spokesman for Oasis said: "Prior to the Ofsted inspection, we had conducted our own review of the academy’s performance and were already aware of the issues that have been flagged in the report. The report acknowledged that Oasis was aware of the challenges at the Academy and had a robust plan to bring about change.

"As a result of our own investigation, we had already decided to make significant changes to the leadership of the Academy, installing an Executive Principal who has a proven track record of improving the academic performance of other schools.

"We will also look to bolster leadership capacity by appointing a new permanent principal who will inspire the whole staff team with high expectation. Amongst our top priorities will be the implementation of a new behaviour management strategy which will allow staff to focus on the core teaching and learning which will lead to real, rapid and radical improvement in academic performance.

"Our overriding response is one of absolute determination to bring about change and embed the improvement plan which is already being implemented."

Other secondary schools to have recently been placed in special measures are Carlton Bolling College, in June, and Belle Vue Boys School, last May. Belle Vue Boys will soon be taken over by the Beckfoot Academy Trust.