Muswell Hill Primary Schools Consultation

Please note: The information below refers to the last phase of the consultation.

Future primary school places in the Muswell Hill area

• The consultation closed on 24 February 2015
• What we consulted on
  • Introduction
  • Primary school places in Muswell Hill
  • What have we done so far to ensure there are enough school places in the area?
  • Consulting with the local community
  • Moving forward – How will we continue to ensure there are enough local school places?
  • Public meetings
• Key Dates
• First Phase

The consultation closed on 24 February 2015

The consultation period has now ended. Thank you for contributing to the consultation process.  All the evidence that we have collected from meetings, one to ones and via the consultation document are now being considered and will inform a report with proposals on how additional school places should be delivered in the Muswell Hill area.

The Cabinet Member for Children and Families, Cllr Ann Waters, made a decision on the next steps at a Lead Member signing on Thursday 26 March 2015.

• The report is available online on the Council and Democracy page - please see item 2

What we consulted on

Introduction

Demand for school places in London is rising and this is reflected in the overall number of applications we receive each year for reception (primary) places in our borough. In 2003/04 there were 2,820 reception children in our schools: by 2013/14 this figure had risen to 3,139 [1], representing an increase of 11 forms of entry (319 places) across Haringey.

To date we have provided new school places in one of three ways:

1. ‘Bulge’ or one off classes: these provide up to two additional classes in a school. We work closely with the Head teacher and governors to deliver these classes. There is no statutory requirement for wider consultation
2. School Expansion: this provides an additional class in every year group at the school and we are required to consult formally
3. New Schools: the opening of three new free schools in the borough that have collectively provided an additional 150 reception places since 2012. Note: All new schools are free schools or academies and in order for them to open an application has to be made directly to the Department for Education

Primary school places in Muswell Hill

Every year we project the number of school places we will need in the borough and we publish this information in the School Place Planning Report.

The projected number of children born in the Muswell Hill area, and therefore school places needed in this area, is shown below in the following table. The information shows that in the Muswell Hill area we will need between 1 and 2 reception classes until 2017 and 2 classes after 2018. These numbers were looked at again in July 2015.

Figure 1: GLA projections for planning area 1:

* For September 2014 St James CE took a bulge class

What have we done so far to ensure there are enough school places in the area?

In July 2013 we set out in our School Place Planning Report that we would need more school places in this area.

We asked for the agreement of Cabinet (the Council’s decision making body) to undertake a feasibility study to determine whether or not this could be physically possible. The study showed it could be possible and in July 2014 we asked Cabinet if we could consult on the possibility of expanding St James C of E Primary school from one form of entry to three forms of entry.

A reception ‘bulge’ class was opened at St James in September 2014 and another has opened in September 2015.

Consulting with the local community

We consulted with the local area around St James CE Primary school stakeholders on whether we should expand this school. The feedback we received on the possible expansion of St James C of E Primary School was varied:

• There was an acknowledgement of the need to provide additional local school places
• There were also substantial concerns expressed about the expansion of St James from its current one form to three forms of entry
• There were also concerns about the proposal put forward that would see a complete rebuild of the school in a manner that proposed that it should be partially located on the adjacent Cranwood House site
• Local residents also expressed concerns about the impact of the potential development of St James at the same time as the proposed redevelopment of the former Cranwood House site and part of the St Lukes site
• There was however broad support for moving from 1 form of entry to 2 forms of entry

Moving forward – How will we continue to ensure there are enough local school places?

We listened to all views expressed through the consultation and balanced these against the need for more local places. From what we heard it was clear that a wider discussion about delivering school places in the area was needed. This conversation includes the staff, governors and parents/carers of children at St James C of E Primary. It also includes the wider area: children, parents of school aged and preschool children, local residents, businesses, all local schools (including staff and governors). It also includes adjacent local authorities and residents living outside of the borough who live close enough to potentially obtain a place at one of Haringey’s schools or who might be affected if the number of places in our borough were increased.

Public meetings

A public meeting was held at Alexandra Park Secondary school, Bidwell Gardens, London N11 2AZ on 3 February 2015 between 6pm-7.30pm. Please see a copy of the Minutes from meeting at APS (PDF 148KB).

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Key Dates

• The Final report was pucblished on 18 March 2015 - view on the Council and Democracy page - see item 2
• There was also a Cabinet Member signing on 26 March 2015

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Please note: The information below refers to the first phase of the consultation which ran in 2014.

We would like to hear your views - please get involved

We want to hear the views of all of these stakeholders as they will help to inform the decision(s) for how we provide places in the future.

This consultation is seeking broad views on how additional places might be provided.

At this stage we are open to questions and seek to gather all views. There are a number of factors that you will need to consider in your response. These are:

• Haringey does not have the power to create new schools, only expand existing ones
• The total Department for Education allocation for estate management and new pupil places in 2014/15 was £6.4m. Estimates of £13.4m were established for the full build of a new 3 forms of entry school at the St James site as part of a broader development that would meet funding shortfalls through capital receipts of at least £4m
• By 2018 Muswell Hill needs at least an additional 2 forms of entry

We have a set of five Place Planning Principles that guide and inform the work that we do. They are set out below and you may find it useful to read them before you make your representations to us.

1. Seek to meet demand for places within established, new or emerging local communities, having regard for the role of schools at the heart of sustainable communities
2. Supporting work to make all our schools good or outstanding, ensuring that every child has a place at a good or outstanding school. Where expansion is needed to meet demand for places, we should favour the expansion of schools where there is proven demand and well-established and successful leadership and management at a good or outstanding school
3. Have regard to the impact of any changes on the viability and standards at existing and new schools
4. Bring forward proposals that make best use of scarce capital resources
5. Work with schools to provide the optimum forms of entry appropriate to the capacity of the school site and the level of demand for that school

Work with schools to provide the optimum forms of entry appropriate to the capacity of the school site and the level of demand for that particular school, giving each school the capacity to meet our aspirations.

• This consultation will run from Monday 19 January until 24 February 2015

There will be further opportunities to express your views on more detailed proposals in the future once this consultation has finished.

There are a number of ways you can let us have your views on this consultation:

• By attending the public meetings and drop-in sessions (details below) - where you will have the opportunity to ask questions, share your views and hear the views of others
• Drop in sessions at Muswell Hill Library, Queens Avenue, Muswell Hill, N10 3PE
  • Tuesday 17 February, 3pm-5pm
  • Wednesday 11 February, 5pm-7pm
  • Thursday 5 February, 3pm-5pm
• Public meeting at Alexandra Park Secondary School, Bidwell Gardens, N11 2AZ
  • Tuesday 3 February, 6pm-8pm
• Please take a look at the Planning Area 1 map (PDF, 102KB) which shows you the schools  located in Muswell Hill. A paper version is also available within the Consultation document below
• By email to: mhschoolplaces@haringey.gov.uk
• By telephone: 020 8489 5019
• By completing the  Muswell Hill Schools Consultation document (PDF, 627KB) and either handing it in to your school office or, if you do not have a child at a local school, by posting it to:
  • Muswell Hill Schools Consultation
    Education Services
    Third Floor, River Park House
    225 High Road
    N22 8HQ
• Also see the  Muswell Hill Terms of Reference (PDF, 477KB) which describe the aim and process of the consultation

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Quick links

• Term dates
• Apply for a school place
• Free school meals and clothing grants
• FREE early learning / education