Sweeping changes

Parents need to know how these proposals will affect the present and future education of their children.

Salford LEA announced an education shake-up last year to reduce surplus places, and this has resulted in the closure and/or amalgamation of some schools in Salford -- will this affect your child?

Two school closures are scheduled to take place at the end of this month. These are Joseph Eastham High School (which was a successful, achieving school that held sixth position in Salford School's Performance Tables in terms of achieving five A-Cs), and Little Hulton Community School (which has had £5m regeneration investment since 1998). These schools amalgamate as from September 1, 2001, when they will be then known together as "Harrop Fold High".

This merger was only approved after Salford Council agreed to underwrite its £4m cost, having failed to secure Government funding. Once again, the "new" school will operate from its two existing site, utilising its original buildings until further accommodation is made available to bring them on to one site. It is anticipated that between 1,400 and 1,500 pupils will eventually attend.

No one at this stage knows if the new accommodation will consist of temporary cabin type classrooms, extensions, or if a new school will indeed by built. However this uncertainty is damaging to both staff and pupils, who, surrounded by chaos and disruption cannot possibly perform to the best of their ability.

Some excellent, experienced staff have already decided to move on, or have accepted early retirement at great loss to the pupils. It is of little wonder there is a national shortage of teaching staff when empty places take precedence over pupils and the staff that teach them.

The question must be asked once again "Is this in the best interest of our children's present and future education?"

Not too much forward planning would have been required to ensure that new schools or at the very least refurbished buildings were available before these dramatic changes swung into being.

Removing schools from the community must surely conflict with substantial regeneration money already invested. It is also contradictory to the Council's promise to recognise the need to maintain and improve the education provision,. having due regard to the policies and proposals outlined in the Unitary Development Plan. Strong leadership and adequate funding achieve successful schools.

September 2001 sees the beginning of the re-organisation of all of the primary schools in Salford. If this proves as devastating an exercise as the one just completed in our secondary schools, I can only offer my sympathy. Parents of Salford, I urge you to contact your councillor, or write to the Director of Education to ask where and when these new schools will become available. Get more involved in the school your child attends, apply to become a Parent Governor, or at the very least become part of the Parent Teacher Association. I am positive any school would welcome your support. Every parent with a child attending either primary or secondary school should make it their business to find out how the changes in the "School Organisation Plan" affect their child.

Perhaps more will be revealed on the publication of the forthcoming GCSE results. As taxpayers, we pour vast amounts of money into providing education for the country's youngsters, and we want to see results. More importantly, what will the outcome be next year. Will it become apparent these changes were indeed for the best -- until then, we can only live in hope....

(Name and

address supplied)