Agenda item

An issues paper prepared by the Opposition Group is attached for the consideration of Council.

The Constitution Procedure Rules relating to Opposition Business are attached for information.

Councillor Kaye introduced the issues paper prepared by the Conservative Group, encouraging the Council to more proactively embrace Government policy relating to the creation of Academies and Free Schools in the borough.

In introducing the paper he highlighted the case for making Free Schools & Academies a central element in urban regeneration.  He also felt they could:

·              Provide increased educational opportunities for disadvantaged children;

·              Offer good quality and diverse educational choices for children as demonstrated by the outstanding success of Cuckoo Hall School in Edmonton and associated new Woodpecker and Kingfisher Free Schools;

·              Greatly improve standards in low performing schools, as demonstrated by the Mossborn Academy in Hackney. 

The Opposition Group felt there was a need for the Council to actively encourage the creation of Academies or Free Schools in the borough as it did in attracting new businesses to the borough, with the following benefits highlighted:

·              Nationally 24 free schools, with 10,000 pupils, had been set up over the past year.  Such schools would drive up educational standards to enable children to achieve higher grades in GCSEs and equip them to compete in the global market;

·              The ability to offer parents more choice in the education of their children, as well as helping to alleviate pressure on school places.

It was also felt that the Council had missed an opportunity in not making available the old Southgate Town Hall site for Academy or Free School use.

Councillor Orhan, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, responded on behalf of the majority group.  She advised that Government cuts in funding, children and educational services being particularly vulnerable, had placed huge pressure on the Council in protecting high quality local services.  In light of continuing uncertainty about future revenue funding the Administration therefore believed it was essential that all schools were fairly funded through a local funding formula.   The requirement for Local Authorities to transfer stewardship of land to Academies or Free Schools was also a matter of concern.

She also highlighted how the Administration had invested in and achieved highly rated educational and children’s services, by developing a family of schools with professional staff delivering quality services.  This quality of education was delivered irrespective of postcode and in response to local demand.  It was felt that Academies and Free Schools could potentially destabilise this success and fragment education provision.  Planning for the future needed to be flexible based on the creativity and drive of local teachers and parents in the established family of schools.

Labour, both nationally and locally, was relentlessly focused on ensuring educational quality to equip children with the skills needed to enable them to reach their full potential and compete in a global market.

Following a lengthy debate, Councillor Kaye summed up on behalf of the Opposition Group, requesting that the Administration create the appropriate environment where new and experienced groups would be encouraged to establish new schools within the borough.

In response to the debate and recommendations made within the Opposition Business paper, Councillor Georgiou highlighted that:

1.      the Administration would continue to support schools in achieving excellence;

2.            the progress made by the Administration in delivering on their commitments in relation to young people, including the introduction of uniform grants, a pilot for free school meals and the establishment of a Youth Parliament;

3.            a number of Free Schools in the borough, such as Cuckoo Hall School, had previously been successful schools under local authority funding;

4.            the Council was already supporting Free Schools, through for example, the provision of various assets and was complying with everything they were statutorily required to do;

5.      The drive and lead being provided by the Cabinet member for Children & Young People in undertaking these activities

With the agreement of both Groups no vote was taken on the outcome of this item.