A council has been slammed for how it has handled a consultation on plans to axe hundreds of unfilled primary school places, including the possible merger of three schools.
It comes after Worthing Labour Group’s bid to secure an extension to the consultation for reforms to education in Worthing and Durrington, to remove 953 currently unfilled primary school places across the borough, was rejected by West Sussex County Council.
The council has proposed:
- Reducing the pupil admission numbers at Durrington Infant School, Durrington Junior School, Field Place Infant School, Thomas A Becket Infant School, Thomas A Becket Junior School
- Merging three schools; Lyndhurst Infant School, Chesswood Junior School, Springfield Infant School, into a single “all-through” primary school on two of the existing school sites
- Creating a new 21-place primary special support centre for children with social communication needs on the Chesswood Road site
- Creating a new eight-place special support centre for children with special educational needs and disabilities
But the plans have sparked anger among the community.
Councillor Dawn Smith said: “We were expecting the consultation to launch after the October half term holidays but heard nothing more until the press release from the council on November 28.
“Members were not kept fully informed during the process.
“This is extremely poor timing and shows a lack of care and attention toward school head teachers and their teams, as Christmas is one of the busiest times of year for staff and parents.”
Councillor Caroline Baxter, group leader, said: “At full council, I called on the cabinet member to extend the consultation until February. I have also asked for support to facilitate a meeting with school head teachers and governors to discuss the proposals further. This has been rejected.
“Jobs are on the line and the choice of schools will be reduced for Worthing parents, carers and children.
“The ridiculous and questionable timing of the consultation is a further reflection of the Conservative administration failing to meet the needs of our schools.”
A West Sussex County Council spokesman said the amount of unfilled school places is affecting the amount of government funding schools receive and creating varying class sizes which makes planning resources “difficult”.
He said the proposal to merge Springfield Infant School, Lyndhurst Infant School and Chesswood Junior School into an “all-through” primary school on two of the sites would reduce 330 of the unfilled places.
And “at the request of Springfield” the council is now consulting on an option for the school to remain a "stand-alone infant school”.
He said the council is also proposing to increase places for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
“All of our proposals have been created following more than 12 months of discussion and support from school leaders across Worthing and Durrington,” he said.
“The consultation was delayed due to changes to some of the draft options requested by schools, and all Worthing and Durrington county councillors were briefed about the proposals a month before the consultation went live.
“Because the delay meant the consultation ran over Christmas, we extended it to eight weeks, above the statutory six weeks. We have again written to all Worthing and Durrington schools and governors to ensure their families are aware and are encouraged to take part.
“Any decisions will only be made after reviewing all of the feedback from our consultation, and where any changes would support the outcomes of pupils.”
The consultation ends at midnight on January 20.
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