'College run like a concentration camp', parents say

Stricter rules have upset parents and pupils at Cowes Enterprise College

An academy school has been liked to a "concentration camp" by parents and pupils over new rules on toilet use and time between lessons.

Children at Cowes Enterprise College on the Isle of Wight need a staff escort to visit the toilet outside of break times, parents have said.

Other complaints include a lack of time for lunch and the introduction of piped music which triggers a detention if pupils fail to arrive in class before the tune runs out.

The college, which is run by Ormiston Academies Trust, said the changes were designed to support well-being and academic achievement.

Aether, a Year 8 pupil, condemned the school's new "authoritarian style".

He said pupils had been told to clap exactly twice when students were praised by teachers and were forced to listen to "motivational speeches" which reduced time in lessons.

He said: "Before school... after break and after lunch, we must stand in register order with one leg either side of the yellow line... and we must be perfectly silent, otherwise we'll get shouted at by our deputy head.

"In fact, the school has earned the nickname Concentration Enterprise Camp."

Year 8 pupil Aether said the school had a new "authoritarian style"

Parent Hope Alexandra Price said children had likened the music between lessons to the TV drama Squid Game, where contestants play lethal rounds of musical statues.

She said her autistic son had been left "petrified" by the music and she had withdrawn him from school.

Ms Price said: "I suspect they know they're causing lots of children damage.

She said a 15-minute time limit to eat lunch had left children going without food and girls had been told to "double pad" if they were on their period in order to avoid having to use the toilet.

In emails sent to the BBC, parents described the school as being like a concentration camp or a prison.

One said: "My own son hasn't eaten lunch for two days, has barely had any water and won't use the toilets."

Another added: "My son feels miserable. He's been coming home sad, hungry, thirsty and crying."

Parent Hope Alexandra Price said her husband worked in a prison and prisoners probably had more rights."

More than 700 people have signed an online petition, demanding a relaxation of the rules.

Richard Quigley, Labour MP for Isle of Wight West, said he was receiving "almost hourly" emails from concerned parents.

He said: "As a father of someone with SEND [special educational needs and disabilities], any changes to routine, even if they're for the positive, need to be done very gently and with a lot of explanation.

"I urge them to go back and talk to parents and kids with SEND... and say, 'What can we do to make things work?'"

Ormiston Academies Trust is run by Tom Rees, who was appointed in 2024 to chair a government advisory group on SEND.

In a statement, the academy said: "At the start of this term, we introduced a number of changes designed to... support both well-being and academic achievement.

"We know that new approaches can take time to embed and we are listening carefully to feedback from parents, students and staff.

"Where sensible refinements are needed, we are making them.

"However, we remain confident that these changes will help ensure our school continues to be a place where children can thrive and so we will be working closely with our school community to support this."