Primary Strategy for Change

Consultation on St James' and Hurst Knoll St James' Primary Schools

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Background

Tameside Council has recently submitted a Primary Strategy for Change to the government Department for Children, Schools and Families. This was in response to the government announcing the Primary Capital Programme. This is capital investment to support wider transformation in the primary sector by rebuilding or improving at least half of all primary schools, bringing them up to 21st century standards with wider services for children and families at the heart of their communities over the next 14 years.

Every local authority has been required to develop a Primary Strategy for Change to show how the capital investment will improve the outcomes for young people in Tameside.

The local authority has the lead role in preparing the strategy. This is because, as commissioner of local services, the authority both reflects the needs and aspirations of the local community and contributes to national and local priorities. The local authority is best placed to plan strategically and join up planning and funding so that the total capital investment is focused on services for children and families. The Primary Strategy for Change must consider the needs of all eligible schools across the whole primary school estate including primary age special schools and voluntary aided schools.

Tameside Primary Strategy For Change

The strategy has been developed with a small planning group. The small planning group included Headteachers, School Advisors, Early Years experts and Services for Children and Young People staff. The group was led by the then Director of Education. The Asset Management Planning Advisory Group, which is chaired by the Cabinet Deputy for Lifelong Learning has also been consulted throughout the development of the strategy.

The baseline analysis considered the following:

• Building condition (based on asset management information held on each school)
• Capacity (based on current admission numbers)
• Demand (based on birth rate)
• Key Stage 1 and 2 attainment (based on 2007 results)
• Achievement of contextual value added (a measure of how much impact the school is having on attainment, based on 2007 assessments)
• An assessment of whether or not the school building is capable of supporting the delivery of the curriculum for the 21st century (based on advice from education advisers)
• Deprivation (based on the needs of pupils attending the school not the post code of its location)
• The extent to which the school is able to deliver extended services including childcare.
  

Taking into account the baseline data, each primary school was assessed and categorised as one of the following:

A Building has been rebuilt or more than 50% of floor area remodelled in last 10 years
B Minor remodelling or investment is required
C Significant remodelling required in excess of £250,000
D School buildings because of their condition, suitability, accessibility and/or capacity deficiencies need replacing rather than remodelling
E School buildings need replacing and the site will realise a contribution from disposal to the bigger project and therefore bring an economic benefit.

Each primary school was informed of its categorisation and Headteachers were asked to confirm their agreement to the categorisation. Both Hurst Knoll St James’s Primary School and St James' Primary School were categorised as C/D.

The strategy was accepted by the Department for Children, Schools and Families in November 2008 as having met all the required elements. Copies of the full strategy can be obtained from Catherine Moseley using the contact details at the end of this consultation document.

Options For Hurst Knoll St James’ And St James’ Primary Schools

Within the initial investment priorities, the suggestion that Hurst Knoll and St James’ Primary Schools could come together was made. This option was suggested because the two schools are close together; they are both voluntary controlled schools within the same parish and both are in need of significant investment. The schools are in different wards, Hurst Knoll St James' Primary School is in Ashton Hurst ward and St James' Primary School is in Ashton St Michaels’ ward.

Educational Standards

Both schools have recently been inspected by OFSTED. Hurst Knoll St James' Primary School was last inspected in January 2008. The report said that this is a satisfactory school. Achievement is satisfactory overall and for most pupils standards are broadly average. St James' Primary School was last inspected in January 2009. The report said this is a good school. Pupils' achievement is good. They make good progress from starting points that are below those typical for their age when they enter Nursery to attain average standards overall by the end of Year 6.

Diocesan Involvement In The Consultation 

Officers from the Diocese of Manchester have been involved in formulating the Primary Strategy for Change and have formally agreed to support the overall Tameside strategy.

The Diocesan Board of Education have issued guidance for officers involved in the review of school provision and the Primary Capital Strategy that includes the following Diocesan Board of Education Criteria:

1. Ensure that parents have the option of choosing to send their children to a Church of England school.
2. To maintain the historic provision of Church of England places by maintaining the proportion of Church of England places across an authority.
3. Where there is demand for Church of England places, to increase voluntary aided places.
   
   Additional criteria are:
   
4. To promote and support the amalgamation of infant and junior schools to become primary schools.
5. To take into consideration Local Authority criteria in primary provision. For example, standards, surplus places, building condition and suitability, community need, finance.
6. Seeking to standardise admission numbers for example: 1 form entry (30); 2 form entry (60); or exceptionally, 1.5 form entry (45), whilst allowing for small rural schools.
7. To take into consideration Diocesan criteria in primary provision for example: parish boundaries; site provision (split site, size, ownership) ; and, governing body opinions.
8. Federation or amalgamation (providing they retain Church of England status).
   

The diocese is supporting the consultation and have not expressed a view as to their preferred outcome.

Birth Rate In Tameside

The birth rate in the borough has seen a large increase over a five year period from 2002 when there were 2,409 births to 2007 when there were 2,855 births. Predictions for the final birth rate numbers in 2008 obtained from the Primary Care Trust (as at the end of October) are around 2,900. The Office for National Statistics predicts that the birth rate in Tameside will remain around 2,800 per year with a drop from 2021 to 2,700.

Overall birth rates in Tameside from 1981 to 2007 are as follows:

Birth rates in the Ashton wards from 2000 to 2007 are as follows:

Source: Tameside Primary Care Trust

As can be seen from the above birth rate data, there has been an increase in the birth rate in three out of the four Ashton wards but Ashton Hurst has seen a decrease since 2000. The birth rate is also still considerably less than it was at its peak in 1990. The table below (January 2009 data) shows that there are places available in almost all classes at both schools.

Whilst in Tameside as a whole, there is a need to increase primary schools places, this is not consistent across areas. Both schools currently have some capacity to respond to an increase in pupil numbers. Therefore the intention is to retain the same number of places across both Hurst Knoll St James' and St James' primary schools whatever the outcome of the consultation.

Consultation Options

There are 2 options for consultation. They are:

1. To close Hurst Knoll St James' Primary School and St James' Primary School and open a new, 2 form entry, 420 place primary school and 26 (full time equivalent) place nursery on the Hurst Knoll site.
2. To remodel both Hurst Knoll St James' Primary School and St James' Primary Schools.
   

Remodelling

If option 2 is the outcome of the consultation, the extent of the remodelling at the schools will be dependent on a number of factors. Therefore, there is a need to undertake a detailed options appraisal to address the building and educational needs of both schools. The funding allocated within the Primary Capital Programme is limited. If the outcome of the options appraisals is that one school requires a complete rebuild, the budget to remodel the other school will be restricted.

The nature of the buildings and site constraints mean that it is unlikely that the Council would be able to rebuild St James’ school, however, given the building needs of Hurst Knoll it may be better value for money to rebuild the school.