Frustrations have once again been shared over the debacle that saw the Isle of Wight Council U-turn on its proposal to consult on the closure of 3 primary schools.
Announced before the half-term school holidays (but quickly withdrawn), parents said they and teachers should not have found out about the potential closures through the media.
1 parent said everybody went into ‘freefall’ when it was announced, causing a ‘huge amount of distress with the children’.
Councillor Debbie Andre, the cabinet member for children’s education, apologised for the anxiety and concern that had been caused at a public meeting at Medina Theatre on Tuesday, but hoped those who attended would have a better understanding of the school place planning issues facing the Council.
Council officers explained there had been a steady decline in pupils entering the school system each year, meaning there were too many surplus places in primary schools, having a negative effect on finances.
There are enough empty places in Island primary schools to fill 7 reception classes, they said, and for every empty place a school loses more than £4,000 in its budget. Another issue was that there were not enough teachers to fill the gaps and cover classes.
Parents expressed their dismay, saying it would have been better if they were told about the issues before the school closures were announced. 1 parent said if there was more clarity about the school’s financial position — if it was in a deficit — then parents may be willing to pay a little to keep it open.
Following the U-turn, 1 headteacher revealed a lot of pupils had already left the school, with more to follow ahead of the new school year. They said the announcement and subsequent U-turn had had a huge impact on the community, which had been very distressing, as there was no reassurance to parents that their wishes would be met.
Parents wanted to know what happens next as they were stuck in limbo not knowing if their children’s school was going to close but asked for support if a consultation were to go ahead.
Councillor Debbie Andre, cabinet member for Children’s Services, Education and Lifelong Skills regarding the recent school place planning briefing:
“I’d just like to say a massive thank you to everyone who joined us at Medina Theatre earlier this week to hear the briefing about school place planning.
“I know that this has been a really difficult time for parents and teachers and I would like to apologise for the way this was communicated to you.
“I thank you all for your positive engagement and the constructive comments put forward at the meeting.
“As I mentioned at the event, we will be discussing next steps and we will let you know as soon as we can. We are here to help you, to support you and to do our best to support Island children.
I assume that this refers to Wroxall school. Why not just write the name? Half the village seems to be for sale and kids are moving to other schools before they are forced to and there are no spaces left nearby.
When you say nearby, where exactly?