The Isle of Wight Headteachers’ Executive Group has expressed their utter dismay and disappointment in the Isle of Wight Council Cabinet’s decision to withdraw the report based on school place planning that was to be discussed this week.
The Headteachers’ Executive group has been working with Council officers and elected members to explore ways in which the significant number of surplus primary places within schools can be reduced.
As previously reported by Island Echo, it was revealed on the last day of the half term that 4 Isle of Wight primary schools were at risk of closure. However, the Council has made a dramatic U-turn after receiving significant backlash from angry parents and teachers.
It’s said that without a strategic direction to effect change, children on the Island are prevented from having the best opportunity for the highest quality teaching and learning.
In a statement, the Group has said:
“The focus of this work with the council officers has been about how collectively, we as schools and the Council as the responsible body for education on the Island, manage this very challenging situation.
“As IOW schools, we have the additional challenge that most of our schools are categorised as small schools (210 children or fewer). Some schools have less than one form entry on roll. Such significant factors as these can influence the ability of the Island schools to provide a high-quality education with good outcomes.
“In not making strategic changes to support schools through pupil place planning, the Council is saying that they are satisfied with the primary school accountability outcomes which at present are below the national threshold. We, as Headteachers, are not and addressing the number of surplus primary places on the Island is one aspect of our response to effecting change so that our children are supported in being able to achieve as highly as other children in England.
Article continues below this advertisement “Some of our schools are currently in a situation where there are classes without teachers for September 2023 due to significant challenges in recruitment. There are multiple Reception classes with intakes of fewer than 10 children, some of whom are still trying to recruit an EYFS teacher.
“In the build up to this paper’s release, over many months, the Headteachers and Governing bodies have felt our voice was listened to. As we entered the difficult process of potential school closures, the Headteachers have wholeheartedly supported the decision that schools need to close on the Island. No headteacher willingly would choose for the school that they lead to close but each of us understand that the closure of some schools is necessary for the benefit of all the children on the Isle of Wight.
“However, the outcome of the curtailed process is a significant lack of professionalism and respect towards the schools named in the paper and indeed all of the schools on the Island.
“The distress to school leaders, staff, governing bodies, parents/carers, communities and of course the children has been unnecessary and very poorly managed. As school leaders we work tirelessly to ensure that the well-being of children and staff is considered at every stage. In the curtailment of this process, we feel totally let down by the chaos that has ensued in the last ten days. The named schools now face a half term of very hard work to begin to repair the damage of the threat of closure. In some cases, this will be irreparable as parent confidence will be affected and some may choose not to send their children to a school that might have been closed. This is very poor modelling of well-being practice.”
“So, in response to the decision to withdraw the paper from the Cabinet meeting with no consultation with or explanation to the Headteachers, our questions are straightforward: Without this change, where do you see Isle of Wight Education in 5 years’ time? And beyond this, in 10 years’ time? How do the actions of the current Cabinet show that the needs of children are recognised and prioritised now so that they all have the opportunities to the highest level of education and enable them to reach their full potential?
“We ask that you meet with us, in person, before the next Cabinet meeting, to explain the actions and decisions. We ask that you meet with us to provide answers to these questions so that we can assure ourselves that you have indeed placed the children in the centre of your decisions. This is what every child deserves.”
“The distress to school leaders, staff, governing bodies, parents/carers, communities and of course the children has been unnecessary .
So why are you still pushing this ?. Backlash against because you are not considering children or parents,Schools are for children big or small. Why only headteachers pushing this ?.
This is the problem that happens when doing the right thing is at odds with what the voters want. Given the way schools are funded by Government on a per-student basis, it is clearly unworkable to keep schools open when they have too few students to be financially viable.
A longer term problem is the Island’s falling birth rate and ballooning elderly population. As semi-isolated, largely elderly community is not sustainable in the long term unless there are sufficient working age people available to service it.
In other areas with large elderly populations (e.g Worthing), carers can easily drive or bus in. Given their low pay and the cost of the ferries, that is not possible for the Isle of Wight.
Most carers in the UK (and the island) are aged 45 to 65 years. The mean age of carers is obviously going to increase as the non-breeding island population contracts. So the island will no longer be an attractive destination for retirees. Given the warming weather and likely regeneration of towns such as Sandown, the island is likely to become a more popular holiday destination for people with plenty of money.
more likely the headteachers are more concerned about the reduction in cash they will get due to lower pupil numbers and that directly translates into lower pay for them.
True, hence they ‘encourage’ children with various syndromes, not because they want a disruptive, hard to get to millstone in the class, slowing the progress of normal students, BUT because they get more ‘funding’ for having such in schools now thus more ‘helpers’ etc, yet of course they can’t say such in these P.C times.
I know as have cousins in the profession.
In years to come probably end up with one massive school for youngsters and one for teens.
I have been saying this for a while. A single large school in Newport makes most sense. All of these children are driven to school by the parents anyway even if they live no more than half a mile away, which is ridiculous and bad for the environment, so it doesn’t matter whether the (generally failing) school is in the same village. The shrinking population of children could all be riding on electric buses to a central, well funded school with the best facilities possible. That might actually raise the woefully poor academic standards on the island at last. But don’t hold your breath!
Another planning report put on the shelf from this council. Give snails a bad name.
the ability of island schools to provide a high quality education with good outcomes, here’s a suggestion teachers spend less time on the picket line , then you may be able to teach your students.
and spend less time indoctrinating kids with trans ideology and teach them to be happy with themselves, as they are and that surgery and drugs are not the answer.
Do you speak from personal experience? A problem shared is a problem halved…