|
The
leader of Herefordshire Council announced on Monday the
immediate recall of draft proposals for a review of schools
in response to government requirements to reduce surplus
school places.
The
move, which is as a result of discussions between councillors
and senior officers before the weekend, is designed to allow
more consultation with communities, more detailed research
and independent and external verification before proposals
are redrafted for final consideration in September.
'The
Conservative group made it clear that it could not support
draft proposals that could see 37 of the county's schools
merged or closed,' said Councillor Roger Phillips. 'Instead,
elected members want more time to involve all schools and
their communities in detailed discussions. We also need
external, independent and objective advice and verified
evidence of the finances and the population projections,
as well as a greater understanding of the effect of any
mergers on rural communities and school journey times.'
'The
council's cabinet recognizes that education officers face
a tough challenge in addressing the problem of falling numbers
of pupils in Herefordshire's schools. If we do not satisfy
Government that we are taking action, it has the power to
cut our funding in education. But we also recognize the
strong feelings in our community, and time has to be given
to enable those views to be taken fully into account when
we set policy for education.'
Chief Executive of the council, Chris Bull added, 'It is
important that we respond clearly to concerns raised by
a number of schools and their communities during this initial
part of the consultation. Local communities and elected
members have said they want more time and we want to ensure
that everyone has the greatest opportunity to put their
views forward.
We have listened and we have taken action. We have suspended
the consultation process now. In the meantime we will proceed
with previously agreed plans to bring in external verification
of statistics, figures and finances, share those findings
with everyone, and listen further to school communities
before we redraft proposals for further consideration.'
Herefordshire,
like most authorities nation-wide, is required by government
to set out strategic plans for the future - taking into
account capacity, future pupil numbers, value for money,
quality of education and building programmes.
The
way government funding is calculated means that Herefordshire
remains the third worst funded county in England and the
council has pledged to continue lobbying central government
for fairer funding. A significant proportion of costs involved
in educating children are fixed, including a high proportion
of staffing costs, yet the funding provided by the government
is calculated by the number of pupils on roll. Even that
funding is under threat if the county does not take action
on falling rolls. If the council can ensure spare school
capacity doesn't exceed 10 per cent, there is the potential
for significant capital investment from the government.
Half of Herefordshire's schools could be refurbished and
five new schools could be built in addition to the proposed
Wyebridge Academy and the Minster College.
Neighbouring
authorities Shropshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire
and Powys are already going through the same process. Many
schools in Herefordshire have supported the schools review
and several head teachers have stated that firm action needs
to be taken to safeguard standards of education.
.'We have already said that the review is necessary and
it presents to Herefordshire the biggest challenge to education
standards for decade,' said Councillor Phillips. 'It is
therefore essential that we give a clear message to children,
parents and schools that we want to listen fully to what
they have to say and we want to take a measured, open and
considered approach in order to secure the best education
provision for the county for the future.'
|
