Parents and teachers fight Stretford school closures
Article published: Monday, March 8th 2010
Trafford Council has proposed two schools in Stretford close to form a new Academy. Lostock College and Stretford High School are due to be shut in August with plans for the new Academy based at the site of Stretford High.
The plans have greatly angered parents and pupils from both schools and the opposition has been growing at a rapid rate. The plans for the merger are linked to Tesco’s proposal for a 166,847 sq ft megastore, which is intended to be built on some of the land from Stretford High.
The Council, who support Tesco’s plans, says it will raise £21 million from the sale of the land and put the money towards the regeneration of Lancashire County Cricket Club. The application will be discussed in a planning meeting scheduled for March 11.
Hundreds of parents and pupils from both schools have rallied together to oppose the proposed school merger. Two Facebook groups have been set up attracting hundreds of members, and an online petition to Downing Street is fast approaching 300 signatures. The campaigners have also garnered the support of the National Union of Teachers and the Anti Academies Alliance.
Many believe the Council’s LCCC regeneration scheme is the main driving force behind the merger.
“The development of the Academy proposal has undermined the democratic process,” says Dave Kitchen, NASUWT Secretary for Trafford, “It seems the main motivation is more to do with a land deal and not necessarily the education of the children in the Lostock and Stretford communities.”
Angela Kennedy, a parent of a Lostock College pupil, says parents are annoyed that the proceeds from the sale of public schools could effectively be going towards a private members club.
“We have been working against the clock to form an organised opposition as this plan is being pushed through at a rate of knots. We are not political animals, we are just parents who want the best for our children,” she explains.
Parents are also concerned because, regardless of the outcome of their campaign, they fear the damage has already been done. They claim teachers are understandably worried about their jobs, and that both they and pupils are being distracted by the uncertainty surrounding their futures.
The Department of Education has approved the sale of the school land to Tesco, although local Labour councillors are against it. David Acton, Labour’s leader on the Tory-controlled Trafford Council, echoes the views of campaigners and is convinced the plans are not in the public interest.
Local residents and traders have also been vocal in their opposition to the plans. The No Mega Tesco campaign say that while they support the redevelopment of the cricket ground, a massive supermarket would have a detrimental effect on local trade.
The Council maintains the reason behind the merger is falling pupil numbers at Lostock College, which it claims is making the institution financially and educationally unviable. Pupil numbers declined from 648 to 371 between the 2001/2 and 2008/9 academic years. The current total is 318, but some parents believe this has been partly fuelled by the long-running rumours of closure.
Parents remain determined to intercept the Academy plan and have scheduled a public meeting this evening (8 March) at 7pm at Lostock College, and are planning a demonstration at the Town Hall.
Join the Facebook group for more campaign details here
Imali Hettiarachchi
To read more about academy schools in Manchester, and the criticisms levelled against them, see this article by MULE’s Tim Hunt.
Comments
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Trafford Council are making a real hash of this. The head teacher of Stretford High has just resigned, this is the head of an outstanding school for goodness sake! The original perceptions attached to the governor endorsed ‘application for funding’ to generate a new building ie an Academy are unrecognisable according to a Stretford Governor. Lostock governors agree and have written to the LA with their concerns. Even some pupils at Stretford High are considering launching their own legal challenge.
Lostock governors are considering developing an alternative plan and parents and governors have had great help from Cllr Steve Cooke, the the Lib Dem candidate who is the only campaigner who has come up with an idea that gives a real alternative to closing the Lostock school site.
Comment by Angela Kennedy on April 20, 2010 at 6:59 pm -
i think this is
Comment by kyle on June 9, 2010 at 2:40 pm
The comments are closed.
