The National Education Union (NEU) and UNISON have said they are ‘delighted’ with the news that Arreton Primary School has been saved from closure.
It was just yesterday that news broke that the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA) had announced its decision to reject the Isle of Wight Council’s plans to shut down the much-loved Church of England school.
Cabinet agreed in March this year to close Arreton St George’s CE Primary School, despite backlash from parents, teachers and governors.
Cowes Primary School is now the only one of the original 6 that were earmarked by the Isle of Wight Council for closure – Arreton, Brading, Cowes, Godshill, Oakfield and Wroxall – that is set to close.
A joint NEU and UNISON spokesperson has said:
“Today, the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA) has ruled that the closure process followed by the Isle of Wight Council was flawed.
“This decision confirms what the NEU and UNISON on the Isle of Wight have been saying since the initial schools closure report in September.
Article continues below this advertisement “We are delighted for our members, children and their families at Arreton and are grateful to all those who campaigned to save the school.
“However, we are dismayed by the negative impact on all those schools originally proposed for closure. Children, staff and the communities which support them were unnecessarily badly impacted by a flawed process which has inflicted terrible damage to the whole school system and Island children.
“As we write, Cowes Primary School is still due to close – a victim of precisely the same flawed process. That closure should be halted immediately.
“Others can carry out an inquest as to how and why this happened.
“We believe that the schools, staff, families and their children, as well as the Diocese and the trade unions, can be proud that their actions have been vindicated.
“When officers and decision makers revisit school closures, as they surely will, the NEU and UNISON implore these leaders to meaningfully involve all their partners.
“First and foremost, this means school-based unions and the Diocese, as well as school leaders, in order to enable us to work effectively together to protect and improve Island education for the children we serve. That means protecting the jobs and conditions of our dedicated skilled school staff, who continue to demonstrate their commitment on a daily basis.”
The Diocese of Portsmouth’s director of education, Jeff Williams, has said:
“We are also not celebrating this news. It does, however, justify the stance that we took right back at the start of this process, which was to argue that the method used to select all six schools originally earmarked for closure was not fair or transparent.
“It has vindicated the efforts of our diocese’s education team, the headteachers and governors of all the schools, as well as the pupils, parents and all those who campaigned against these closures. All those who held up placards and banners, or who wrote to the council, or who attended public meetings to protest – they need to know that their views have also been vindicated.
“One of the reasons that we campaigned so hard was because we know how important it is to get this process right. The Isle of Wight Council has already indicated that it will have to go through a similar process again, because the issue of surplus places still exists. If they do so, it is imperative that they carry out the process in the right way, or else we’ll be back in this situation again.”
Another excuse to raise our Council tax next year.
Oh do shut up, you weirdo
The decision has been quashed but the problem remains, at growing financial cost to all schools. How quickly can an acceptable resolution be reached by the current authority?