Contact: Peter Colenutt - Education Officer (School Review)

Tel: 01962 846157; E-mail: [email protected]

Chris Holt - Education Officer (School Organisation and Review)

Tel: 01962 845673; E-mail: [email protected]

1 Summary

1.1. The purpose of this report is to seek authority to consult on the proposal to amalgamate Meadowlands Infant and Meadowlands Junior schools to form a 210 place (one form entry) primary school. The proposal has come about following discussions between local authority (LA) officers and the headteachers and governors of the two schools. Both governing bodies are concerned about the declining primary school population in the area and wish to consult parents, staff and the wider schools' community on the view that a primary school will present a better opportunity to build on and improve the quality of children's education and their standards of attainment.

1.2. The governing bodies of both schools recognise that the declining rolls will impact on the schools' budget and consequently staffing levels, presenting considerable challenges in maintaining high quality curriculum delivery. It is also the case that limited financial resources are diverted from other schools to manage the consequences of declining pupil numbers and the associated diseconomies of scale, through the real term protection element of the local management of schools formula to support curriculum delivery and to help cover the running costs of under-occupied school buildings.

1.3. The issues raised in this report reflect the County Council's corporate strategy:

· Hampshire safer and more secure for all;

· Maximising well-being;

· Enhancing our quality of place,

through the possible provision of a primary school reflecting the County Council's primary school building brief, designed to improve teaching and learning facilities, and through the exploration of opportunities to meet the extended schools agenda. The impact on the Every Child Matters agenda and the associated desired outcomes are set out in section 8.

2 Recommendations

a) that the Executive Member for Education approves consultations taking place during the summer term 2007 with parents, staff, governors and other interested parties on the possible closure of Meadowlands Infant and Meadowlands Junior Schools, Lovedean, Waterlooville and the creation of a 210 place (one form entry) primary school with the continuation of early years provision on the Meadowlands site;

b) that a report on the outcomes of the consultations be prepared for submission in autumn 2007.

3 Strategic implications of surplus places

3.1 The County Council has a statutory duty to plan the provision of school places and to secure an appropriate balance locally between supply and demand. The need for school places changes in response to population movements and birth rate variations. In many areas of the county the child population is declining; in other areas, new housing developments are creating the need for additional school accommodation. Population changes mean that schools may go through periods when there is pressure on places and others where there is a surplus.

3.2 The number of schools with 25% or more surplus places is an element of the County Council's Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA). In recent years, the number of Hampshire schools in this category has risen, as a result of demographic pressures, but has remained in line with the national average. In January 2007, the figure in Hampshire was 52.

3.3 The underlying trend of significantly falling rolls continues to exert upward pressure, in spite of measures to reduce surpluses through area reviews and local re-designation and re-use of general teaching spaces. The number of primary schools with more than 25% surplus places is forecast to rise to around 70 if management measures do not continue to be taken. Both Meadowlands Infant and Meadowlands Junior Schools have surpluses significantly in excess of 25%, as shown in Table 1.

4 Pupil numbers and schools' capacities

4.1 Table 1 shows schools' capacities, present and projected, numbers on roll (NOR) and surpluses for the Meadowlands Schools.

Table 1

4.2 The combined forecast number on roll of 169 in 2011 falls significantly below the current 423 place capacity (2 fe equivalent) and below that of a 210 place 1 fe primary school. These numbers are predicated upon the continued pattern of approximately 1/3 of children living within the Meadowlands catchment area attending the schools.

5 Context

5.1 Since the early 1990s primary pupil numbers in the Waterlooville area have been closely monitored. The Meadowlands infant and junior schools share one site and serve a discrete community on the Wecock estate in north Waterlooville and are ranked thirteenth and fifteenth respectively on the indices of multiple deprivation (IMD). In 2006 there were 431 primary schools in Hampshire, these were ranked from one (most deprived) to 431 (least deprived). The geography and demography of surrounding areas is such that there is a clear rationale for focussing solely on these two schools in the context of the removal of surplus places.

5.2 The governing bodies' proposal, if implemented, would reduce the number of surplus places in line with the County Council's CPA target and would retain primary school provision in an area of deprivation. The governing bodies wish to create a robust primary school with high quality teaching and learning facilities and continued early years provision on site. Governors are keen to build on established partnership working with the nearby Links Children's Centre (paragraph 6.2 refers) and for consideration to be given to how existing provision for children, families and the wider community might be further enhanced.

6 Early Years Education and Childcare and Extended Schools

Early Education and Childcare, and Extended Schools

6.1 Meadowlands Community Childcare & Pre-school is a company limited by guarantee providing early years education and childcare on the school site. Registration is for 50 places covering children from 2 years to 8 years. The provider is also a registered charity and provision occupies space in both the Infant and Junior schools (24 registered places at the Infant school and 26 at the Junior school). The registration allows the provider to run holiday care, which is well used.

6.2 The Links Children's Centre, located approximately ½ mile from the Meadowlands schools, works closely with them as part of its outreach work. The Children's Centre runs a satellite Parent and Toddler Group from the Meadowlands Junior School building. Since the Links Centre has only limited space in its own building, retaining the parent and toddler provision on the Meadowlands site is essential in meeting the service delivery requirements of the Children's Centre. The main full day-care for the Links Children's Centre is Squirrels Day Care, which is housed in a nearby Community Centre. Squirrels is registered for 46 places from 0-8 years and also offers holiday care.

Extended Schools

6.3 By 2010, all primary schools should be delivering the core offer of extended services after consultation with children, parents and local community partners. This includes access to childcare at or through the school from 8am to 6pm all year round, parenting support including information sessions, parenting programmes and family learning, study support and activities for children, `swift and easy referral' to support services for families and children. The amalgamation proposal presents opportunities to identify local priorities as part of the consultations and to ensure that extended services are at the heart of planning for school improvement.

7 Financial implications

7.1 Any future strategy will need to be self-financing in terms of capital funding. A primary school would be located in one of the two present school buildings, with part of the site expected to realise a capital receipt which would be used to fund the work necessary to create the primary school. Discussions with landowners/developers and Havant Borough Council will be undertaken with the aim of maximising capital receipts from the sale of land to ensure the financial viability of the proposed amalgamation and maximise investment. A detailed financial appraisal will form part of the report on the outcomes of any consultations.

8 Every Child Matters agenda

8.1 The amalgamation proposal supports the desired outcomes of the Every Child Matters agenda.

being healthy: (enjoying good physical and mental health and living a healthy lifestyle) - by considering options which will maximise opportunities for children to walk or cycle to school, thus increasing opportunities for exercise and reducing car dependence;

staying safe: (being protected from harm and neglect) - by having access to a secure learning environment and good pre-school provision;

enjoying and achieving: (getting the most out of life and developing the skills for adulthood) - by providing the facilities to support a high standard of education for children in suitable buildings within their own community;

making a positive contribution: (being involved with the community and society and not engaging in anti-social or offending behaviour) - by safeguarding friendship and neighbourhood groups by continuing to provide primary education as close to pupils' homes as reasonably practicable;

economic well-being: (not being prevented by economic disadvantage from achieving their full potential in life) - by ensuring that proposals will be to the benefit of all children and give them a sound start to their schooling and future ability to provide both for themselves and their families.

9 Consultation

9.1 If consultations are agreed, formal meetings will be arranged with governors, staff and parents of all schools potentially affected. In addition, local councillors, the Teachers' Liaison Panel (TLP), UNISON, Havant Borough Council, East Hampshire District Council, parish councils, Local Strategic Partnerships, the Primary Care Trust, the Diocese of Portsmouth, the Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth and the local HAT (Hampshire Action Team) and MP will be consulted, along with other interested parties and the wider schools' community.

10 Legal implications

10.1 None

11 Financial implications

11.1 See section 8.

12 Personnel implications

12.1 None

13 Impact assessment

13.1 A full impact assessment will be undertaken in conjunction with the consultation process.

14 Crime prevention issues

14.1 Continued primary education provision in the area, together with early years education and strong links with the local Children's Centre offers opportunities to continue and build on good childcare facilities, parenting skills and citizenship.

15 Views of the Local County Councillor

15.1 The local County Councillor supports the recommendations in this report and his views on the possible amalgamation of the schools will be sought as part of the consultation exercise, if approved.

16 Conclusion

16.1 The declining pupil numbers at the Meadowlands schools are a cause of concern for the governing bodies and the local authority. The governors' request to consult their schools' communities about a possible amalgamation to form a primary school is a way forward which offers the potential to safeguard primary age provision in the area, improve the learning environment, and enhance community facilities.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background documents

The following documents discuss facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and have been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB: the list excludes

1. Published works

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

None