|
|
 |
| |
Siting new secondary was not a competition
• FOLLOWING lobbying by Camden Council, the government has decided not to change the way it funds schools, which could have meant Camden schools receiving £8 million less than they do today.
Instead the government will embark on a three-year review of schools’ funding.
This is a big relief for our schools and we are very happy we’ve been listened to as we have consistently argued the proposals were punitive and would impact on our ability to provide a first-class education for our young people.
We will therefore continue to feed into the government’s new review of funding to ensure that the case for our schools continues to be heard in Whitehall.
Locally we continue to listen to the views of residents, parents and teachers as we draw up our plans for Building Schools for the Future.
The CNJ’s assertion last week that appeals for more secondary places in the south of the borough have been ignored could not be further from the truth (School is ruled out for south, June 28).
I cannot stress more clearly that we have never seen our commitment to build a new school as a competition between the north-west and south of Camden.
Camden’s partnership administration has not needed to be convinced of the need for new school places in this borough – it was top of our list on day one.
We have then proceeded to build the case for a new school to present to government – which must commission all such plans – and to find a viable site.
As many readers will be aware, we have had to identify a site that meets certain criteria within the BSF programme – size, cost and availability within the BSF time frame.
With all the will in the world, nowhere else – north or south – was discovered that was large enough, affordable, or available within the timescale of the BSF programme other than the Adelaide Road site. Happily this site is in an area where it is needed.
Nor are we abandoning families living south of the Euston Road. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, we are committed to doing the best for all out students and will continue our dialogue with parents, what is now the Department for Children, Schools and Families (formerly the DfES) and surrounding boroughs to explore our options south of Euston Road.
In the meantime, our current proposals also include expanding South Camden Community School by two extra classes each year to provide more opportunities for students in the south of the borough to access a school place in Camden.
We will also be giving every support possible to South Camden to continue its improvement in exam results, just as we will doing with all our other schools.
Furthermore, we are going to examine naming feeder primaries for our secondary schools as we hear from families that the transition from primary to secondary school is a major concern to them.
Finally, while not forgetting the massive importance of the new school and the real passion and feeling around where it should be, it’s important not to lose sight of the huge range of opportunities Building Schools for the Future brings.
Camden’s bid is worth around £200 million to our schools and our children.
Our existing secondaries will be modernised and students across Camden will benefit from new state-of-the-art learning facilities, making the most of new technology.
This is about preparing our students with the skills they need to be successful and competitive citizens of the future and I would encourage local residents to get behind us.
Cllr ANDREW MENNEAR
Camden Council
Executive Member for Schools
|
 |
|
| |
|
|
|
