Open letter on possible Bolingbroke school Post Reply

[ready2pop]

If you mean that taking pupils with a broad range of abilities at the outset is not conducive to academic excellence then I would simply point out that Dunraven students do as well in exams (better last year I believe) than those at Graveney.

Academic excellence is about educating all children to the best of their abilities not just taking the brightest at 11 and ensuring they are still bright at 18

These are issues for a wider discussion than the new school though!

[Baronarnaud]

To answer Livegreen's questions about Chestnut Grove:

- Can I ask where the funding for the new school is coming from?

- Academy status: Governors are debating this at the moment. Opinion is apparently divided. Personally, I'm not keen on the idea of academies - I think we will end up with a worse hierarchy than we have now.

- Ofsted judged Chestnut Grove to be 'outstanding'

- Like everywhere else in the borough, the most affluent parents in Balham choose to go private, or to buy or rent property in Graveney's catchment area. (Many of my child's friends' parents did this.) Chestnut Grove has had a poor reputation locally in the past which has been hard to shake off. I also believe that there is an element of racism involved - Chestnut Grove has a high proportion of black students and they are a noisy and lively presence on the streets of Balham. Inevitably, there are fights occasionally - no different to schools up and down the country, I imagine, including Graveney, but it is scary and off-putting for parents.
Despite this, there are a growing number of parents that I know of at my child's former primary school who are beginning to realize that if we want our local secondary school to improve (and by extension the local area), then we need to send our kids there.
When my child started at Chestnut Grove in 2009 approximately 1/3 of his year group went too - the highest number of pupils from this primary school in a long time. I believe a similar number went in 2010.

- As for the results, the percentage of those achieving 5 a* - c grades including maths & English have indeed dipped by 6%.

[equality]

If the new school had banding and a longer list of feeders that included Falconbrook at least, surely that would ensure a more diverse entry? I have seen many posts about local schools for local children but yet, if you are at HW and have moved a distance away once your child is in, you could still get into the new school. How is that fair?

Let me propose, if we have this school that there is banding, a wider reach in terms of feeder schools and, importantly, that you still live in the area. It is a non argument to say that it is unfair for the child next door not to get in or to say that people will get their children to fail. All over the borough children living next door to each other are not at the same school.

An increase in school places is not bad, it would just be better if the admissions were fair. However, I do realise that we would then see a second tranche of short term letting. Surely the council could do something about that too.

Just let it be fair?

[equality]

Ps, I wonder if someone could clarify the distance thing? Is it that if your child is in a feeder, the priority for those in the feeder is distance from the feeder or from Bolingbroke?

[yummydaddy]

See, what is fair is not that easy, especially if the school is oversubscribed, otherwise we could all easily agree on the criteria.

On your suggestion: the more further-away feeders you include, the more likely it will be that a child A from a feeder further away (but living closer to that feeder) might get priority over a child B from say Belleville (living farther from Belleville than some other Belleville-children). Even if that kid B was closer to Bolingbroke than kid A (because Belleville is closer), still kid A would geed priority under a feeder system. I’m sure a number of people would not find this fair.

[equality]

I am no clearer as to the distance/feeder yummydaddy. Does anyone know the answer. Once the percentage of pupils and therefore numbers for each feeder is clear, is priority to the those in the feeder who live nearer the feeder or nearer the Academy? Also, some people on the Forthbridge road site for BV might find that proposal unfair as from what I read, someone over a mile away would get a place over someone next door to the site, is that fair?

[livegreen]

At the consultations admissions were explained to me as;

When each feeder is given its allocation it is how far a child lives from the Bolingbroke that is important.
Therefore is someone did move to the area to get into a primary but then moved out their chances of getting in would be greatly reduced.

I think in an ideal world most support the idea of a local school for local children, which is generally obtained by straight line from the school, however in trying to do the best for everyone and to be more inclusive a feeder school system was put forward.

[yummydaddy]

Ark prospectus says:

“First, places will be allocated to pupils of each feeder primary school in proportion to the total number of applications from that school.
Secondly, within each feeder primary school’s allocation of places, applications will be ranked by distance from the pupil’s home to the academy, based on straight line distance.”

If Bolingbroke admits 40 BV children (out of, say, 80 applicants) and 20 FB children (out of say 40 applicants), it is very likely that child no 41 (which won’t make it) on the BV-list, lives closer to Bolingbroke than child no 20 on FB list. (which will make it).

Forthbridge issues is really different because of the split site peculiarity. So there is not much value to bring this up in this thread.

[equality]

thank you both for clearing that up. I know the Forthbridge site is a separate issue but if the issue is local schools for local children, surely that should apply across the borough and not only apply to the Free School. If it is unfair for someone who lives further away to get in because FB, for example is included, it must be unfair for someone a mile away from Forthbridge to get in over someone next door. It is all too easy to say these issues are separate but it is the same council and it is shows us all too well that everything is slanted towards BTC parents, in my view. And it is my view, I except it is not everyone's.

[yummydaddy]

Don’t know what you are talking about; wasn’t the latest BV-proposal rejected in last council meeting ?

It just happens to be 5 BTC parents who had the guts and energy to push Bolingbroke through all the way (as it seems), do they need to apologizes to live BTC ?

[chestnutgrover]

I'm new to this debate I'm all for increasing provision. But if this happens at the expense of other excellent schools (you may guess from my user name that I'm a parent at Chestnut Grove) then in these days of cuts and belt tightening this strikes me as unfair. Kids at Chestnut Grove, which is not only judged as oustanding by Ofsted but has a truly inclusive admissions policy, are likely to have to put up with a worsening physical environment, too hot in the summer, too cold in the winter and leaky when it rains.

[schoolgatesmum]

Hello chestnutgrover! It's interesting that you say that CG has a totally inclusive policy as I thought that of the 150 places, only 90 are for distance based and the other 60 are on selection for specialist language and arts. Is that right or have I got that wrong?

[pot39]

I too am a very happy and satisfied parent of a very happy and thriving child at Chestnut Grove and am hoping that our younger child will start there in September.
I live out of the borough, closer to both Graveney and Dunraven than Chestnut Grove. However, Chestnut Grove was and is our chosen school. Our eldest child simply sat the Wandsworth test to get the place.

Outstanding Status is hard won by any school and the head, teaching and support staff and children of Chestnut Grove strove to achieve it. That effort has been sustained, and even increased to maintain its fantastic record in contextual value added. There has been a dip in results this year, largely explained by the particular characteristics of that cohort, however they still achieved more than they would have done in all but 6 of English Schools.

We have been constantly delighted by the school's focus on every child doing their best and their flexibility to meet children's and parent's requirements. For example, last year when a group of children wanted to do triple science and music GCSE's, which appeared not to be possible from the option boxes the school flexed to enable them to do this.

Our child has been on trips to Germany, Ardeche, the Isle of Wight and the first music tour to Holland.

I believe that Chestnut Grove has received more applications than ever for 2011 and would encourage parents and children to visit it before passing judgement.

[localunionmember]

I note from GMB's website that there is a demo tonight on this. My union Unite has got involved now.

The press release says:
"At short notice a protest has been arranged with protesters from local branches of GMB, Unison, Unite, NUT, NASUWT, ATL and from Battersea and Wandsworth Trades Union Council. They will stage a photocall outside the town hall.

From 7pm Wednesday 19th January
Outside the Town Hall,
corner of Fairfield Street/ Wandsworth High Street
Wandsworth Council,
Wandsworth High Street
London
SW18 2PU

They will have a banner with the slogan: “STOP EDUCATION APARTHEID IN BATTERSEA FUNDED BY TAX PAYERS.” They will also have placards saying “Bankers free school excludes children from the ‘wrong side of the tracks’”

I will make every effort to pitch up. Excluding the Falconbrook kids is wrong.

[schoolgatesmum]

I think this is highlighting the fact that there is no perfect admissions system in the UK. I think straight line distance gives way more "education apartheid" - you only have to look at Honeywell to see that. Using selection (and to a certain extent banding) gives you a catchment that could extent miles and therefore you no longer have a local school. Feeder schools seems to be upsetting people as well - we all have a different opinion on which are the best feeder schools. It seems to me that there is quite a good balance (in terms of social demographics)in the schools which have been chosen here. I would suggest that Bolingbroke would lead to the most comprehensive intake of any of the secondary schools in the borough - there is no discrimination in terms of faith, gender, academic achievement or specialist aptitude - and it will have a broad mix of local children from differing backgrounds. Where's the apartheid there?