Parents to have say on schooling in 2009 (From Bournemouth Echo)

Parents to have say on schooling in 2009

7:00pm Thursday 4th December 2008 in Search By Steven Smith

PARENTS will get their say on a proposed overhaul of the school system in Purbeck in the New Year.

As reported in the Daily Echo, Dorset County Council is reviewing schools in the district in a bid to reduce the current 1,000 surplus places, about 20 per cent of provision.

Now, the authority’s senior councillors have given the consultation process the go-ahead to begin in January.

County education chiefs are recommending that Purbeck changes from its current three-tier system to a two-tier structure, using primary and secondary schools.

That leaves first and middle schools across the area with an uncertain future.

The feedback will be collected by June 2009 and if the plans get the go-ahead, the changes would start coming in from September 2011.

Bosses say the switch from three to two-tier would remove 900 surplus places.

Speaking to the Daily Echo last month, Wareham Middle School head teacher Iain Clark said he was “fundamentally opposed” to any changes, which he said would “tear the throat” out of the current three-tier system.

But other heads were more pragmatic, with Swanage First School head Paul Mason saying he thought some changes were needed.

Head teacher at the Purbeck School Richard Holman said he was “very glad” that the review was happening.

He said: “We’re no different in many ways from many areas of the country; with falling rolls there’s some real pressure building up on the system.

“I hope we can have an informed debate.

“There’s a need for the review to happen.”

He said there were no failings in the current way of working, the district was simply a victim of demographic trends. The county council’s head of raising achievement, John England, said pupils would benefit, as they would only have to make one transfer from primary to secondary school.

He added that the Purbeck School would be in a “much stronger” position to deliver the government’s new 14-19 curriculum.