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Places crisis as schools say no to ‘bulge’ classes
THE council is faced with a race against time to find school places for 90 four-year-olds by September as primaries in the hardest hit areas have said they have no space for extra classes.
“Learning centres” – temporary classrooms with no attachment to existing schools and run directly by the council – are being considered as a last ditch solution to a chronic shortage of places that is most acute in the Belsize, West Hampstead and Hampstead areas.
Attempts to persuade existing schools to run “bulge” classes, either in their current buildings or in Portakabin-type annexes, have met resistance.
Documents obtained by the New Journal show that six primary schools have turned the council down flat, while two more are locked in lengthy talks.
The council report reads: “Officers have held meetings with the headteachers and members of the governing bodies at eight schools in the northwest of the borough to discuss the possibility of accommodating an additional ‘bulge’ class this September. Of the schools who these detailed discussions have been held with six schools have either not been able to physically accommodate the additional class or they have not felt it possible to address the issues this would cause for this September.”
Among the reasons schools have given is the lack of spare capacity, concerns over the quality of teachers who could be recruited at short notice, a risk to standards, and fears over the loss of physical space.
Council education chief councillor Andrew Mennear said: “It is sensitive and we are still in talks and pursuing a couple of different options. Schools have issues they need to talk through about what this means – is this a one-off situation or are they being expanded by plan or by stealth, for example. We do recognise parents’ concerns; it is horrendously stressful for families.” |
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