Mervyn Benford: Schools Reorganisation Affects Everyone

Thanks to Standards Not Tiers for sending through information about this very important meeting taking place a week on Monday. We’ll certainly be attending to hear what Mervyn has to say about the schools consultation taking place on the Wight at the moment, and urge others to attend too. Ed

Flawed Consultation = Illegal Consultation. Are We the Victims of this Type of Crime?
Mervyn Benford, Information Officer for the NASS (National Association for Small Schools) will present an analysis of the current education consultations and show you how the local authority, have already failed in their duty to consult adequately with you.

He will outline the consultation process for your benefit rather than the benefit of the Local Authority and explain how you should respond to the consultation.

Mervyn Benford was instrumental in reversing the decision to close large numbers of schools in Shropshire, Hereford & Worcester and Cumbria earlier this year and has been working with a number of schools on the Island over the last few months to help them prepare responses to the consultation with the aim of preventing their eventual closure.

Mervyn has spent his whole working life in education, as a teacher, Ofsted inspector and as an LEA officer.

As advocates of small scale education, NASS have amassed a vast array of research based evidence to show that small schools outperform their larger counterparts and add significant value to the life experiences and future success of their young people and their local communities.

This meeting has been convened by SNT to provide access to this information and help all schools under threat of closure to make full use of the expertise of the NASS in defending themselves against the Isle of Wight Council’s unreasonable attack on them.

Suppport
Please come and lend your support – your council is closing local schools to save money. They have no sound educational reasons for the closures and we have the proof. Of the 23 schools that are to close, 61% are judged good or better by Ofsted. Closing Good schools is not about raising standards.

SNT (Standards-Not-Tiers) are members of the National Association of Small Schools. By joining with the NASS and the education think tank HSE (Human Scale Education), SNT have demonstrated their commitment to the retention of small schools. By living up to their name and concentrating on standards not tiers, SNT have committed to developing a community focussed education system for the Isle of Wight with which to drive up standards by abandoning the current political obsession with tier based policies.

The Last Chance Saloon
Have a drink in the “The Last Chance Saloon”! There will be a bar available and so those attending the meeting will be able to enjoy a drink and exchange ideas and views with others in a similar predicament and with members of the NASS and SNT teams. We look forward to seeing you there.