Council Commentary
Council Commentary
11 April 2011
Education Select Committee Minutes, 11 April 2011
Free Schools
In response to a request on an update on the position of free schools, it was reported that two free schools, ARK Conway and the West London Free School, were scheduled to open in September 2011. A proposal had been put forward by parents in Fulham for another free school. The Secretary of State had reopened the position for parents to apply to open free schools for September 2012.
Councillor Needham asked if it was possible for parents in the community to request where they wanted to see their local schools expand to accommodate additional numbers. It was reported that this was something parents should discuss with headteachers.
Cabinet Meeting Minutes, 21 March, 2011
Dennis Charman, of the H&F National Union of Teachers, presented a deputation about local schools in Item 9, School Organisation Strategy 2011/2012.
“9. SCHOOL ORGANISATION STRATEGY 2011/12
The Leader welcomed Mr Dennis Charman and his colleagues to the meeting. Mr Charman presented his deputation expressing concern regarding how the Council had used the data available to substantiate the recommendations within the report. He was of the view that the strategy should not be based too much on choice data. It should also consider parental preference and what they received from the schools. He noted that parents’ satisfaction levels from their 3rd and 4th preference schools were at a very high level. Parents were very happy with the high level of service delivered by these schools. He implored the Council to work with the schools to build up their profile and use the data more carefully as the schools’ achievements might not be reflected in their reputation.
In response, Councillor Binmore noted that the Council believes in giving
parents the right to choose the school they prefer their children to attend. The strategy took into account a wide range of factors including 4 to 5 years of preference data, schools’ ability to expand from 1 to 1½ form entry, site suitability, OFSTED reports and attainment. The Leader thanked Mr Charman for his comments. He noted that the Council was keen to see all schools succeed and parents to have an option to choose local schools. The Council’s expectation was for more local children to be educated in local schools.”
14 February, 2011
Education Select Committee Minutes 14 February 2011
“In response to a question from Councillor Needham on one of the free school’s proposal relating to transportation to school, Andrew Christie had not heard about this and would let the Committee know if any transport proposals had been put forward from this free school in question. Councillor Needham was concerned that the borough’s schools would be competing against the free schools in the future and if that was the case then all schools should have equal opportunities. She was also concerned that recent media coverage on the free schools indicated that the borough’s schools were not of a high quality, which was not the case. She asked if it was possible for the Council to work with its schools to market their excellence.”
7 September 2010
The first mention of The Rivendale Group was at the Education Select Commitee 7th September 2010. The first questions were asked about who Rivendale was and some expressions about free schools impacting existing schools.
“Director’s Oral Report
Andrew Christie updated the Committee on the following:
- · Academies – Queensmill School and the London Oratory had expressed interest in applying for academy status but had not followed up the application.
- · Free Schools – three applications from the borough had been received for the new free schools proposals, which were:
§ Wormholt North Hammersmith Free School (ARK) (to be know as Burlington Primary Academy), which was looking at the old Wormholt Library site for its location
§ Rivendale Group in the Shepherds Bush area
§ West London Free School (secondary school looking for sites in Hammersmith and Fulham or Ealing)
The Secretary of State had invited the proposers to provide a business plan on the free schools application. Officers will meet with the proposers to discuss the plans. Councillor Chumnery asked for information on the Rivendale Group, such as whether it was a parent group. Andrew Christie reported that there were parents in the group; the person fronting the group had spoke to many parents and had advisors who worked in the education field. It was noted that it was a statutory requirement for the free schools to consult on their proposals.”
…..
“In response to Councillor Chumnery’s concerns that she had not been kept informed about the proposals for free schools, Andrew Christie noted that the Council was not involved in the proposals but would provide an update to the Members of the Committee on the development of free schools on a routine basis.
Action: Andrew Christie
“Councillor Graham questioned that if the free schools potentially opened during the academic year, places would be offered after the Council had made its offer. Andrew Christie responded that the Secretary of State would give exemption of admissions on this occasion and would treat the places as late entries. The free schools would almost operate as if they were independent schools. Michael Pettavel expressed concern that the current schools could suffer if new schools were created, and the fabric of the current schools would run down due to lack of resources and would not be an attractive choice for parents and pupils to chose. He asked for assurance that the projects for current schools continued to be a priority, such as repairing leaking roofs, as he wanted schools to look as good as private schools. Andrew Christie responded that the Council continued to have a rolling capital programme of works but could not guarantee that there would not be any changes as the budget was currently under review by the Government, but noted that Hammersmith and Fulham had a good record for investing in schools over the years. In respect of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) works, Andy Rennison was looking at all schools to assess what needed to be done.”
13 July 2010
The first mention of free schols in H&F was at the Education Select Commitee 13th July 2010.
| “Presentation on the New Proposals for Free Schools and the Academies Bill The Committee will receive a presentation giving an outline of the Government’s new proposal of how parents, charities and community groups can apply to run free schools and the Academies Bill. Minutes: The Committee received details of the Government’s proposals for the establishment of ‘Free Schools’ and the expansion of the Academy system. Members were informed of the principles behind the anticipated legislation, the steps that would be required to obtain Free School or Academy status, levels of interest locally to date and the Council’s role in facilitating the new arrangements. Members noted that the Government intended to make it easier for groups such as charities, universities, businesses and parents to establish new schools. These ‘Free Schools’ would be all ability state funded non profit making establishments set up in response to parental demand, free from local authority control and designed to improve choice and standards. Ian Heggs, Assistant Director, School Improvements and Standards, informed the Committee that the proposals provided an opportunity for alternative provision when there was a need to respond to demand. There were currently insufficient places in primary schools in the centre and north of the borough and with the anticipated withdrawal of primary capital funding it was possible that the need could be met through the free school mechanism. Two groups were currently in discussions with the Childrens Services Department regarding proposals for primary schools and conversations had taken place with a total of six stakeholder groups of different types. The Committee was, however, informed that the Council’s role was essentially limited to enablement rather than commissioning. It could provide a link between parents groups and potential providers, assist parents in assessing demand and help with the provision of sites but not directly sponsor projects. In response to a question from the Chairman, Andrew Christie, Director of Childrens Services, confirmed that there was some commercial and business appetite locally but the ventures would have to remain non profit making. Mr Heggs, replying to a question from the public gallery regarding quality controls, stated that all groups would have to go through a vetting process but ultimately it would be for the Department of Education to determine applications. Once the schools were established they would be subject to Ofsted inspection but it was acknowledged that there remained uncertainties around the checks and balances. Mr Heggs also addressed concerns raised regarding sustainability. The best solution would be for providers to manage a school on behalf of parents, thereby overcoming continuity issues when the critical mass of interested parents dissipated. Andrew Christie, in response to a question from Councillor Chumnery regarding funding, confirmed that the pupil premium would apply to free schools in the same manner as other schools but there was not yet any guidance on how the shortfall in start up funding could be addressed. The Government had set aside £50m to support the new scheme but this could have only modest effect. |