News
12 July 2007:
Press Release from Schools4Communities
Schools Adjudicator rules in favour of new admissions system
The ruling today by the Schools Adjudicator effectively renders the new Admission Code dead in the water.
The introduction of a lottery into Brighton and Hove admissions is a damming indictment of our education system, an admittance of failure, with the last resort – to spread the admissions misery. Every year over 60% of the city's children will have real uncertainty over which school they will attend.
But this is not the real calamity. Brighton Council claim the new system creates a fairer system and that everyone now has a chance of accessing a better school. But this is the biggest untold lie. The introduction of catchments guarantee that only the central middle class areas of Brighton and Hove have any chance of accessing better performing schools, whilst the poorest children can access only the poorer performing schools. The lottery has only levelled the playing field between the middle classes, whilst the new catchments have shut the poorest children out altogether.
Brighton and Hove Council have been allowed to ringfence the poorest sections of our community into single school catchments with no choice of other schools and certainly no realistic chance of accessing our better performing schools. The number of children in receipt of Free School Meals will be consistently above 35% at Falmer High and well over 25% in Longhill High. Compare this with below 10% in Hove Park and Blatchington Mill from 2009. Is this justice, is this fair, is this COMPREHENSIVE education. No it is not
The new code was meant to challenge the old inevitability of the admissions process in order to achieve a more comprehensive system. The Adjudicator has missed a golden opportunity to send a message that comprehensive education matters and the best performing schools are not the preserve of the middle-classes.
Above all the adjudicator's judgment is lazy beyond belief. He has ignored the impact of concentrating Whitehawk children into a single school, ignored the concerns of Stringer, Varndean and Patcham (which wasn't even mentioned). He ignored the sidelining of the Admissions Forum and he has shown a level of deference to incapable officials which is truly shocking. This judgment is a sad day for Brighton and Hove and we can only hope the new administration will allow it stand for no longer than the single year provided by the adjudicator. We wonder if David Hawker will stick around to watch Longhill be placed in 'special measures' by Ofsted.
A fuller report will be published in due course.
23rd March 2007
Another piece in the TES:
Too many losers in this game of chance (by Libby Purves)
9th March 2007
Two opinion pieces in the TES:
Lotteries are no way to decide allocation of secondary places (by Keith Turvey, senior university lecturer in education)
Placed by chance (by David Hawker Director of Children's Services, Children and Young People's Trust, Brighton and Hove City Council)
28th February 2007
This issue has become a national news story with the CFS's decision to adopt the fixed catchment/lottery system for secondary school admissions featuring as a major storyline on Radio 4's Today programme. Radio 2 and Radio 5 have also featured the story and there has been interest from TV news and national newspapers. See:
Schools to give places by lottery (BBC News, 28 Feb)
School plans pushed through (The Argus, 28 Feb)
School places allocated by lottery (Guardian Unlimited, 28 Feb)
School lottery introduced as pupils miss out (Telegraph.co.uk, 28 Feb)
School places decided by lottery (C4 News, 28 Feb)
Parents protest on school places (BBC News, 27 Feb)
27th February 2007
Pat Hawkes, chair of the Children's, Families and Schools Committee, again used her casting vote to push through the proposals.
19th February 2007
The Scrutiny Committee voted 7-6 to send the Secondary Admissions Proposals back to the Children's, Families and Schools Committee to reconsider the original decision. The emergency meeting must take place within 10 working days.
A call for the reinstatement of Councillor Juliet McCaffery, sacked so outrageously by Council Leader Simon Burgess, will be made by everybody in our city who values democracy.
12th February 2007
Most of you will have by now heard about the disgusting manipulation of the democratic process by the Labour Group. Having lost the arguments both morally and on the facts, with 6 out of 10 councillors lining up to throw out the proposals, Labour sacked their own vice-chair from the CFS committee one hour before the vote, in a desperate but successful attempt to manipulate the vote.
This is the most open and visual abuse of power that we can remember in a long time in this city. Are there no depths to which this administration will sink? It seems not. What is more, it is crystal clear that this sacking and abuse of democracy was about saving Labour marginal seats in Hanover/Elm Grove and Queens Park. This had nothing to do with what is best for the children of this city.
Vote Result
| Ken Norman | (C) | against | |
| Ted Kemble | (C) | against | |
| Vanessa Brown | (C) | against | |
| Lynda Hyde | (C) | against | |
| Jayne Bennett | (Ind) | against | |
| Pat Hawkes | (L) | for | |
| Gill Mitchell | (L) | for (replaced the removed Juliet McCaffery) | |
| Les Hamilton | (L) | for (he substituted for Sue John) | |
| Jack Hazelgrove | (L) | for | |
| Richard Mallender | (G) | for |
Pat Hawkes casting vote as chair saw the worst option, the single Falmer catchment adopted, but not pulled south so it has no comprehensive mix, the Stinger/Varndean catchment is massively oversubscribed and ignored, Prestonville and Westdene sent to Hangleton etc etc
So where are we? This is the prospect:
- Pat Hawkes said Falmer is a good and an improving school and will therefore thrive. We say yes it is an improving school but only because it has had a more comprehensive mix of late, including children from Hanover and Queens Park. Well not any more.
- Those with least choice of all in Moulsecoomb and Bevendean having zero chance of accessing better schools (Jack Hazelgrove was an absolute disgrace)
- Certain and massive oversubscription in the Stringer/Varndean catchment, by at least 95 children kids in 2008. (Does anyone believe they will put spend money putting 3 extra classes on at Varndean when there are 90 empty desks at Patcham ????)
- A lottery deciding where over 60% of our children are educated.
- A huge increase in cross-city travelling as children from as far away as Queens Park will now access Stringer/Varndean and children living as central as West Street end up at Hove Park Lower School in Hangelton
- Some children who can now walk to school such as those in Prestonville and Westdene will have to be bussed 4 miles to Hangleton
- Uncertainty for all. Equality of Uncertainty has been achieved.
- Children across the city not being able to get places at schools they live next door to.
Rather than concentrate on improving standards at unpopular schools and increasing the provision in this neglected city, this council has sought to 'shuffle the deck chairs on the titanic' and in the most outrageous and undemocratic manner.
None of the above concerns have played any part in this debate. This came down to simple party politics with Labour and Green fighting over marginal seats in Hanover and Queens Park.
We would also note that Richard Mallender (Green) voted for these proposals, resigning many Preston Park children to long journey times that will be forced upon them even though ALL can currently walk to school.
If this is allowed to stand, our children will not forgive us and god only knows what this ruling administration will think they can get away with next. We intend to fight this decision with everything we have. Keep abreast of developments though our extensive contact list. For more details email schools4communities.co.uk
09 February 2007
See The Argus stories:
Labour squabbles over schools plans and
Challenge to schools admissions plan.
06 February 2007
See The Argus stories:
Rebel councillor explains stance that led to sacking and
Heads question school catchment plans.
09 January 2007
See The Argus story: 66 'lost' children fuel school admission row.
08 January 2007
Over 300 parents, children, teachers and councillors braved terrible weather to witness the handing over of a 3,200+ petition saying 'No to the SAR'
From Patcham, Portslade, Westdene, Withdean, Coldean, Moulsecoomb, Bevendean, Preston Park and Coombe Road families brought their banners and listened to Cate Miller make a passionate speech urging the Council to 'think again. Change should only happen if it benefits all parts of our city, not just a vocal few.'
The atmosphere was upbeat as people realised the strength of feeling across the Brighton and Hove. Councillors who attended listened to the concerns of parents, and how the proposals would affect their communities.
One family from Portslade had found out only 2 days before and were devasted by the news. Schools 4 communities vows to continue campaigning to ensure all parents understand how the proposals will affect them.
Read more about it on the BBC Southern Counties and The Argus websites.
A map of the council's proposed catchment areas can be viewed at www.theargus.co.uk.
15 November 2006
On 6th November 06 Children Families and Schools Committee (CFS) adopted the proposals of the Secondary Admissions Review Working Group. However they also agreed to reconsider some aspects of the proposals and to perform consultation with schools before agreeing a final set of proposals in January 2007 [NB date now changed to 02 February]. See CFS Adopts Proposals. The first children affected will be those who transfer to secondary school in September 2008.
These proposals deliver an element of social justice into the secondary school system in Brighton and Hove through ensuring a comprehensive intake of pupils into most schools. However there are several issues which give cause for concern. These concerns cover:
- Several aspects of the new admissions process and process and its implementation. See Issues with Proposals
- Why a simple alternative, which could also have delivered a comprehensive intake of pupils into all schools was not considered or modeled by the Working group. This alternative would have resulted in minimal change from the existing distance based system. See Simple Alternative
Which catchment are you in [download in PDF format]:
The shortcut to much of the paperwork used by the Working Group and the record of the decision list (and at some point the minutes) is at www.brighton-hove.gov.uk.