This in from the office of Isle of Wight Conservative MP, Bob Seely. Ed
Isle of Wight MP, Bob Seely, has written to Education minister, Nick Gibb, asking him to “unequivocally support” continued secondary education in the Sandown bay area.
The move comes after the operators of Sandown Bay Academy, Academies Enterprise Trust (AET), commenced a consultation process with a view to closing the school next year.
The possible closure has angered parents in the town and surrounding area and moving secondary education to Ryde, five miles away, would add £1million to the council’s school transport bill, Bob said.
In the letter to the minister, Bob said,
“All the data provided by the Isle of Wight Council shows the continued need for secondary provision at Sandown.
“There are currently around 1,000 students on roll at the academy, a perfectly viable number to create a financially viable high quality school.
“I think it would be very helpful at this stage if Ministers could make an unequivocal statement that the Government will support continuing secondary education within Sandown.
“The uncertainty for both students and parents is untenable. Next term children in partner primary schools need to apply for secondary school places, students in Year 9 will be making GCSE choices and children in Year 11 will be selecting their post-16 option.
“We need to step in and end the uncertainty so that parents and students have clarity about the options available to them.”
Two options
Bob explained to the minster there were two options available to secure secondary provision in Sandown.
The first option is to re-broker the academy with a high performing sponsor.
The second is to allow AET to close the academy so the Isle of Wight Council can immediately alter the age range of The Bay CE Primary School to an all through 4-16 or 4-18 school and he supported the second option.
He added,
“The Isle of Wight Council and I have given a public commitment that we wish to see continued secondary education on the Sandown site. The Council has been undertaking an extensive consultation process, including ten public meetings, to ascertain the views of the community.
“Although there are still two weeks left of the consultation we have already had a huge response with over 1,500 submissions. 98% of those submissions support the retention of secondary education within Sandown with around 85% supporting the all through option involving The Bay CE Primary School. Less than half support academy re-brokering.”
Bob said he would want to see the Government working with the Regional Schools’ Commissioner and the Isle of Wight Council to develop the best option for delivering outstanding education for The Bay community.
Letter from Bob Seely MP to Education minister, Nick Gibb.
Further to our recent conversation, I undertook to provide you with an update on Sandown Bay Academy.
As you will be aware Academies Enterprise Trust (AET) commenced a consultation process with a view to closing Sandown Bay Academy with effect from 31st August 2018. Their plan includes making an offer for the students to attend Ryde Academy, which as you know over 5 miles from Sandown. In reality, parents will be free to exercise parental preference and to seek an educational placement in any Island school with surplus capacity. The Isle of Wight Council estimates that this will increase demand on the home to school transport budget by one million pounds annually. That cost could only be met by reducing services elsewhere within the Council.
Since making this announcement Sandown Bay Academy has been subject to an Ofsted inspection and found to be providing an inadequate education for the students. Understandably, the AET announcement around closure and the subsequent Ofsted inspection has sparked widespread anger on the Island with parents and students feeling rightly let down.
All the place planning data provided by the Isle of Wight Council shows the continued need for secondary provision at Sandown. There are currently around 1,000 students on roll at the academy, a perfectly viable number to create a financially viable high quality school. There are hundreds of similar sized secondary schools across the country that provide high quality outcomes for their communities.
I would be grateful if Ministers could make a commitment that there will continue to be secondary provision in Sandown at the earliest opportunity. The uncertainty for both students and parents is untenable. Next term children in partner primary schools need to apply for secondary school places, students in Year 9 will be making GCSE choices and children in Year 11 will be selecting their post 16 option.
We need to step in and end the uncertainty so that parents and students have clarity about the options available to them.
I believe there are two options available to us to secure secondary provision in Sandown. The first option is to re-broker the academy with a high performing sponsor. The second is to allow AET to close the academy so that the Isle of Wight Council can immediately alter the age range of The Bay CE Primary School to an all through 4-16 or 4-18 school. I am aware that work is being undertaken on both options and we will clearly want to evaluate proposals on their merits so that we meet the community’s aspirations of having outstanding secondary education. Personally, I am a supporter of the second option.
The Isle of Wight Council and I have given a public commitment that we wish to see continued secondary education on the Sandown site. The Council has been undertaking an extensive consultation process, including ten public meetings, to ascertain the views of the community. Although there are still two weeks left of the consultation we have already had a huge response with over 1,500 submissions. 98% of those submissions support the retention of secondary education within Sandown with around 85% supporting the all through option involving The Bay CE Primary School. Less than half support academy re-brokering.
Finally to reiterate, I think it would be very helpful at this stage if Ministers could make an unequivocal statement that the Government will support continuing secondary education within Sandown and have every intent of working with the Regional Schools’ Commissioner and the Isle of Wight Council to develop the best option for delivering outstanding education for The Bay community.
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