cause4eb.co.uk campaign against unfair secondary education 4 east brighton live in the shaded zone?...

Cause4eb.co.uk

Campaign Against Unfair Secondary Education 4 East Brighton

LIVE IN THE SHADED ZONE? You now have no choice of secondary school

Queens park

Race course

Hanover

Cause4eb.co.uk


Introductions

Queens Park School - Rosemary Collins, Chair of

Governors

David Hawker, Director of Educational Services

Pat Hawkes, chair of the council’s children, families and

schools committee (CFS)

Cause 4eb - Gordon, Paul, Matt, and many more…..

Thanks to everyone for attending

If you’d like to stay informed, please provide email details

Cause4eb.co.uk


Cause4eb Presentation:

1. The old secondary school admissions criteria

2. What was changed & why

3. The process of change - Scrutiny Review

4. The process of change - Public Consultation

5. The consequences this year

6. What about next year?

7. The council gets it wrong - we pay the price

8. Sort it out now!

Cause4eb.co.uk


1. The old secondary school admissions criteria

Secondary schools - oversubscribed - old criteria:

1st - Strong medical / exceptional reasons

2nd - Sibling link

3rd - Children living in a priority area drawn on the map around the school each year

Cause4eb.co.uk


2. What was changed & why:

• The 3rd criterion of priority area replaced with ‘home to school safe walking distance’

• Claimed that new criterion better complied with the government’s Code of Practice - requires admissions criteria to be ‘clear, fair and objective’

Cause4eb.co.uk


3. How the change in policy was brought about - Scrutiny Review

• 2002 - council set up Scrutiny Review Panel to investigate admissions policy options

• The Review Panel made a number of sensible recommendations about future admissions criteria - including keeping priority areas

• These recommendations were largely ignored by the council

Cause4eb.co.uk


4. How the change in policy was brought about - Public Consultation

• Following Scrutiny Review, council conducted a ’wide ranging’ public consultation

• Poorly conceived, badly distributed leaflet offered limited range of options for change

• Under 1% of parents responded (only 185, compared to 750+ parents signing Cause4eb petition)

• Of this tiny %, majority did not want the 3rd criterion changed to ‘home to school distance’

Cause4eb.co.uk


5. The consequences this yearYou now have no choice of secondary school

Queens park

Race course

Hanover

Cause4eb.co.uk


6. What about next year?

• Review of admissions policy; not a response; it is a requirement of the policy change process

• Findings will only affect children starting in September 2007 earliest;

• 2002 review failed to report in time for 2004 intake, so year 4 children could suffer

• No parental representation on review working group; no explicit commitment to address EB issues so far

• Year 5 will endure unfair and discriminatory system; The exclusion zone is likely to be even bigger next year

Cause4eb.co.uk


7. Council gets it wrong - we pay the price

• 750+ concerned parents signed our petition demanding that the policy is changed urgently

• Constituency MPs Des Turner, David Lepper argue that new system may contravene European Human Rights legislation as it is so discriminatory

• Local councillors argue ‘that the new policy has been shown to be inequitable’ and demand that it is looked into urgently

• David Hawker admits that the new system is ‘unfair’

Cause4eb.co.uk


8. Sort it out now!

We have proposed short term solutions ahead of the forthcoming review:

• review school admissions numbers/set up additional classes in popular schools - rejected by council

• consider ‘binodal’ system modification to current policy - rejected by council

• open dialogue with council, schools etc.. to seek other short term solutions - no response to date

• Clear perception that the council lacks the will to seek short term solutions to the problem it has made

Cause4eb.co.uk



Queens park

Race course

Hanover

Cause4eb.co.uk


Next steps - questions to council representatives

• And don’t forget…..

• You have a voice - write, email, call

• Our website - www.cause4eb.co.uk

• Thanks to QP school

• If you’d like to stay informed, please provide email

details

Cause4eb.co.uk



Queens park

Race course

Hanover

cause4eb.co.uk campaign against unfair secondary education 4 east brighton live in the shaded zone?...

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