This weekend, I will endeavour to get an account of tonight's meeting posted on this blog.
In the meantime:
I would like to say thank you to all involved in NAME's first public meeting. We were grateful for the use of the Refectory and to the speakers- especially those who travelled some distance to address the crowd. And I would like to extend an especial thank you to those of you who came along to hear what we had to say. There were many people standing at the back for a long time, so thank you for your patience. It was good to hear from audience members- yes, all of them. We hope that everybody keeps the dialogue going, attending more meetings and please do leave your comments on the blog. We will hold another meeting towards the end of the "consultation" phase and we hope to have it in two parts: in the daytime for parents who prefer that, and an evening meeting again for working people. Keep watching this space and stay involved.
Thursday, 28 February 2008
Wednesday, 27 February 2008
Don't Miss Our Meeting!
Just another reminder:
Thursday 28th February is the day of NAME's first public meeting, and we've promised to bring you more details, so here they are:
We are delighted to host a number of speakers, who will be giving information and opinions from a range of perspectives. Two of our own campaigners will give some background and reasons for opposing this hasty imposition of "the unfair, undemocratic and unaccountable juggernaut that is the academy". Midhurst's chairman of the town council will give a perspective on town/ siting implications. A parent, former governor and university lecturer will incorporate his expertise in community development. And we feel privileged to present two dedicated national campaigners who will be sharing a great knowledge and experience of academies.
And we really want to hear what you have to say. After the formal speeches have finished, we will invite comments and questions from the floor. If you want to make your voice heard, or if you just want to listen, please join us at the Refectory in Easebourne at 7pm. We have had a very good response thus far, so if the crowds turn out in full force, we will have to move all and sundry to the church which seats many more. We hope to see you there.
Thursday 28th February is the day of NAME's first public meeting, and we've promised to bring you more details, so here they are:
We are delighted to host a number of speakers, who will be giving information and opinions from a range of perspectives. Two of our own campaigners will give some background and reasons for opposing this hasty imposition of "the unfair, undemocratic and unaccountable juggernaut that is the academy". Midhurst's chairman of the town council will give a perspective on town/ siting implications. A parent, former governor and university lecturer will incorporate his expertise in community development. And we feel privileged to present two dedicated national campaigners who will be sharing a great knowledge and experience of academies.
And we really want to hear what you have to say. After the formal speeches have finished, we will invite comments and questions from the floor. If you want to make your voice heard, or if you just want to listen, please join us at the Refectory in Easebourne at 7pm. We have had a very good response thus far, so if the crowds turn out in full force, we will have to move all and sundry to the church which seats many more. We hope to see you there.
Tuesday, 26 February 2008
Link up with a private school on the way?
Private schools were told last year that in order to retain their charitable status, they must be seen to be using that status to assist those less fortunate than themselves. NAME expects that as part of the proposed plan for the Rother Valley, a prestigious private institution will be rolled out to prove its credentials by handing out some largesse to those so disadvantaged that they must attend an independent Academy in Midhurst. Don't be fooled by such acts of 'generosity' - they will save the private school a fortune, in fact an average of £225 per child in tax breaks. Marlborough College has such an agreement with United Learning Trust's Swindon Academy. Marlborough's Master said of its relationship "whilst working with, and for, the deprived in this country was decidedly unglamorous, from a pragmatic viewpoint he hoped that the voice of the school would subsequently, be given more weight when discussing integrated education policies with the government." (http://www.marlboroughcollege.org/Files/omc/AGMs/AGM%20Minutes.pdf) What more reason could you want!
NAME has no doubt that a link up with a prestigious private school wil simply rub salt into the wound as far as teachers are concerned. Many will be deeply insulted by the suggestion that, for all their privilege and funding, private school staff can show Rother Valley teachers how to educate our community's children
NAME has no doubt that a link up with a prestigious private school wil simply rub salt into the wound as far as teachers are concerned. Many will be deeply insulted by the suggestion that, for all their privilege and funding, private school staff can show Rother Valley teachers how to educate our community's children
The Big Give Away: Why the Rush?
“We should be putting our children first, not the needs of Sponsors. NAME is about what’s best for our children, and we know that an Academy isn’t the right answer. Neither are school closures – we mustn’t let our communities die, especially for the sake of pushing through a half-baked policy. ” – a Rother Valley parent.
· NAME expects that under plans to be revealed on Wednesday, West Sussex County Council will announce its intention to hand over the land and buildings on the Midhurst Intermediate School and Midhurst Grammar School River sites to United Learning Trust, as soon as this summer. These are assets paid for out of council taxes, yet ULT may be allowed under its Funding Agreement to sell off the River site and keep the proceeds! Name spokesperson Simon Boxley argues:
“You might not like the way that West Sussex County Council have run Rother Valley schools, but at least in theory you could vote them out. However if WSCC washes its hands of these schools, they will be beyond the electorate’s control for good. NAME predict that in a desperate bid to gain central government funding, West Sussex intend to open the new Academy on the existing MIS and MGS sites in September 2008, as a temporary measure before a new school is built. New ownership – same old buildings. We say why rush into such a divisive and controvertial course of action, instead of waiting for a school rebuild which would allow us to retain democratic control over the use of our taxes. This scheme bears all the hallmarks of other rushed privatisations. Like Railtrack, this can only end in disaster.”
· NAME have consistently argued that the ‘consultation’ is anything but a serious effort on County’s part to gain the public’s views. Sadly this has been confirmed this week by West Sussex’s refusal to abide by its outcome, merely to have regard for views expressed. However, we urge everybody to attend the meetings, return the forms and let West Sussex County Council know that Rother Valley residents will not see their heritage, their taxes and their democratic influence thrown away in this rushed manner.
Lizz Tinder from the NAME campaign added:
“The proposals published this week by WSCC are highly contentious, so we expect a high level of interest in the campaign. We’ve already heard from many people intending to attend our public meeting on Thursday 28th February at the Easbourne Refectory at 7pm. If the Refectory becomes too crowded, we will move the meeting to the Church in order to accommodate everyone. We are very sorry that this meeting clashes with the Herbert Shiner parents’ evening, but this was the only date we could book the venue following publication and before meetings held by the LA at each school. We welcome late-comers from the parents evening, and we intend to hold another public meeting at the end of this phase of consultation. More information will be continually published on the blog, where you can make your feelings known: http://namecampaign.blogspot.com/ and you can email us at: namecampaign@yahoo.com”
· NAME expects that under plans to be revealed on Wednesday, West Sussex County Council will announce its intention to hand over the land and buildings on the Midhurst Intermediate School and Midhurst Grammar School River sites to United Learning Trust, as soon as this summer. These are assets paid for out of council taxes, yet ULT may be allowed under its Funding Agreement to sell off the River site and keep the proceeds! Name spokesperson Simon Boxley argues:
“You might not like the way that West Sussex County Council have run Rother Valley schools, but at least in theory you could vote them out. However if WSCC washes its hands of these schools, they will be beyond the electorate’s control for good. NAME predict that in a desperate bid to gain central government funding, West Sussex intend to open the new Academy on the existing MIS and MGS sites in September 2008, as a temporary measure before a new school is built. New ownership – same old buildings. We say why rush into such a divisive and controvertial course of action, instead of waiting for a school rebuild which would allow us to retain democratic control over the use of our taxes. This scheme bears all the hallmarks of other rushed privatisations. Like Railtrack, this can only end in disaster.”
· NAME have consistently argued that the ‘consultation’ is anything but a serious effort on County’s part to gain the public’s views. Sadly this has been confirmed this week by West Sussex’s refusal to abide by its outcome, merely to have regard for views expressed. However, we urge everybody to attend the meetings, return the forms and let West Sussex County Council know that Rother Valley residents will not see their heritage, their taxes and their democratic influence thrown away in this rushed manner.
Lizz Tinder from the NAME campaign added:
“The proposals published this week by WSCC are highly contentious, so we expect a high level of interest in the campaign. We’ve already heard from many people intending to attend our public meeting on Thursday 28th February at the Easbourne Refectory at 7pm. If the Refectory becomes too crowded, we will move the meeting to the Church in order to accommodate everyone. We are very sorry that this meeting clashes with the Herbert Shiner parents’ evening, but this was the only date we could book the venue following publication and before meetings held by the LA at each school. We welcome late-comers from the parents evening, and we intend to hold another public meeting at the end of this phase of consultation. More information will be continually published on the blog, where you can make your feelings known: http://namecampaign.blogspot.com/ and you can email us at: namecampaign@yahoo.com”
Sunday, 24 February 2008
Don't Miss the Rough Guide
Lots are asking NAME about academies. They sound nice- lots of money, new buildings- but what actually are they? My Rough Guide to Academies Part 1 can be found a few posts down. There is a succinct definition at the top and fuller descriptions below for those who wanted to know more. If you click on the post title in the "Archive" navigation bar on the left of the page, you will be taken to a new page dedicated to that particular post.
Saturday, 23 February 2008
big give away- coming (back) soon
Apologies.
We are receiving different information and need to (re)confirm a few things, so for those of you who saw "The Big Give Away" posted by Resist!, keep checking the blog. We will be re-posting a fuller report as soon as we can. In the meantime, there should appear some generic information about academies. Watch this space!
We are receiving different information and need to (re)confirm a few things, so for those of you who saw "The Big Give Away" posted by Resist!, keep checking the blog. We will be re-posting a fuller report as soon as we can. In the meantime, there should appear some generic information about academies. Watch this space!
Friday, 22 February 2008
Letters to the editor - pt. 2
Dear Sir
Our County Councillors have rightly condemned the Post Office for conducting "a consultation in name only" which is "dictation, not consultation". Did they think the County Council had a monopoly on behaving in this way? This is exactly what they are doing with regards to the future of the Rother valley schools.
I was also interested that our local County Council stooge, Mr Blair-Robinson, chose to portray the debate over the future of our schools as "old Labour" opposing what is a New Labour policy. Is our Conservative controlled Council incapable of independent thought on education? As a former Conservative councillor I am appalled that he chose to pretend that those opposed to the Academy were all motivated by old Labour ideology. He must be aware that an independent study of the first academies showed that they were a very expensive way of achieving virtually nothing. I was not aware that wasting money was now Conservative policy.
As a former pupil of Midhurst Grammar School I would like to point out that thanks to what he describes as a "slapdash" education I gained a place at Oxford. This was down to the dedication and skill of the teachers at the school in its "dark days". His attitude to the school and its teachers will only demoralise those who are dedicated to educating our children. Finally his threat that the school will be closed if he and his friends on the County Council don't get their way is simply pathetic. Maybe he is too motivated by ideology to care what anyone else thinks.
Yours faithfully
Peter O'Connell MA (Oxon)
Our County Councillors have rightly condemned the Post Office for conducting "a consultation in name only" which is "dictation, not consultation". Did they think the County Council had a monopoly on behaving in this way? This is exactly what they are doing with regards to the future of the Rother valley schools.
I was also interested that our local County Council stooge, Mr Blair-Robinson, chose to portray the debate over the future of our schools as "old Labour" opposing what is a New Labour policy. Is our Conservative controlled Council incapable of independent thought on education? As a former Conservative councillor I am appalled that he chose to pretend that those opposed to the Academy were all motivated by old Labour ideology. He must be aware that an independent study of the first academies showed that they were a very expensive way of achieving virtually nothing. I was not aware that wasting money was now Conservative policy.
As a former pupil of Midhurst Grammar School I would like to point out that thanks to what he describes as a "slapdash" education I gained a place at Oxford. This was down to the dedication and skill of the teachers at the school in its "dark days". His attitude to the school and its teachers will only demoralise those who are dedicated to educating our children. Finally his threat that the school will be closed if he and his friends on the County Council don't get their way is simply pathetic. Maybe he is too motivated by ideology to care what anyone else thinks.
Yours faithfully
Peter O'Connell MA (Oxon)
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