Whitefield Schools

This article is about the special school in Walthamstow. For the secondary school in Barnet, see Whitefield School.

Whitefield Schools is a special school in Walthamstow in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, offering support for children with a wide range of special physical, educational and behavioural needs and difficulties.

Whitefield Schools
Address
Macdonald Road Walthamstow , London , E17 4AZ England
Coordinates	51°35′42″N 0°00′07″W
Information
Type	Special school; Academy
Established	1903
Department for Education URN	140795 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Principal	Elaine Colquhoun
Gender	Boys/girls
Age	3 to 19
Enrolment	+300
Website	http://www.whitefield.org.uk/

The school became part of the Whitefield Academy Trust multi-academy trust in April 2014. The same site also contains the Whitefield's Research and Development Centre, home of the academy's training functions, an outreach service and a specialist library.

There are three 'sub-schools' within Whitefield schools:

• Peter Turner Primary School – For pupils aged 3–11 years old with autism or speech and communication difficulties.
• Niels Chapman Secondary School – For pupils aged 11–19 years old.
• Margaret Brearley School – For pupils aged 3–19 years old with more complex needs including learning difficulties, physical impairment and sensory impairment.

Joseph Clarke School is also part of Whitefield Academy Trust.

In 2017, Ofsted rated the school as inadequate due to the misuse of these rooms, which the school claim to have since been discontinued. Parents were largely unaware of these rooms and their usage.

Child abuse incidents

In 2021, an inquiry into alleged systematic abuse at the school has been initiated following the discovery of CCTV footage showing students being assaulted and neglected in seclusion rooms from 2014 to 2017. The rooms were bare, unventilated, and locked from the outside. Staff were seen assaulting students and leaving them in unsanitary conditions. Despite the evidence, some staff members remain employed.

The abuse was discovered through CCTV footage found on 44 memory sticks, showing 39 non-verbal pupils subjected to neglect and abuse. A whistleblower equated the conditions to "torture" and criticized the school’s internal investigations. The Children’s Commissioner for England has called for stricter regulations on seclusion rooms.

The school, which - at the time - catered to over 300 pupils with severe or complex needs, is cooperating with the police and local authorities.

In 2024, despite proven abuse, some staff - who were filmed abusing the students - are still employed at the school and have not been barred from working with children.