SCHOOL REORGANISATIONS, POLICY AND PRACTICE

1. A major strategic function of the County Council as Local Education Authority, is to keep the supply of school places under review and take appropriate action to remove surplus places. The principal reason for doing this is that surplus places are costly to maintain and absorb resources which could be used to better advantage. If local education authorities do not review surplus places, the Secretary of State can intervene and direct them to take action. OFSTED recognises that Hampshire has a good record in planning and managing surplus places in schools through a number of external reviews carried out in recent years.

2. Primary school rolls have been falling for a number of years and there are currently around 10% surplus primary school places across the County. In the light of this, and following consideration by the Education Policy Review Committee and the Executive Member for Education, the Cabinet has now endorsed a programme of reviews in areas of the County identified as having large numbers of surplus primary school places as set out below:-

_ Aldershot

_ Andover

_ Fareham (Central/East)

_ Fareham (West/North)

_ Farnborough

_ Romsey

_ Tadley

_ Waterside

_ Yateley/Frogmore


The process is an exhaustive one comprising, in instances where major changes such as amalgamations or closures are involved, extensive consultations, reports to the Education Policy Review Committee and the Executive Members for Education and Policy and Resources, the publication of statutory notices, and final decision by the School Organisation Committee.

3. The Cabinet recognises the difficulty the County Council faces in maintaining its level of performance in the future as surplus places arise because of underlying demographic trends. However, it is considered crucial that the momentum is not lost in managing this difficult and sensitive process, hence the programme of reviews described.

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