News
‘Short-sighted’ sell-off scuppers extra classes
Tuesday, 12 April 2011
A TOWN hall has been blasted for selling a school building that could plug the growing primary places crisis in a borough.
The South London Press revealed on Tuesday that 177 children had not received any of their chosen six primary school places in Lambeth.
Around three-quarters of kids were given their first-choice school, or 2,230 from 2,977 applications.
A 40 per cent increase in applications over the past four years has meant many of Lambeth’s primary schools have increased the number of kids they teach.
These so-called “bulge classes” often require temporary buildings such as portable cabins to be used.
Some schools do not have enough land to expand beyond a single form of entry each year.
They include Archbishop Sumner Primary in Reedworth Street, Kennington. The popular primary only takes in 30 pupils each September.
Parents want Lambeth council to allow it to expand into a former school opposite.
But the old Olive School in Wincott Street has been listed for sale in the council disposals list this year and could be sold to housing developers.
Archbishop Sumner is rated as “outstanding” by Ofsted inspectors. Kennington parent Helen De Vane failed to gain a place at Archbishop Sumner for her son this week.
She said: “It’s so frustrating that, for years, the good and outstanding schools only have one class in each year with no room to expand.
“Here is a chance to put that right. The demand is there. The building is there.
“It is utterly ludicrous to knock it down and send kids miles away to get a poorer education.
“Lambeth says the money will be spent elsewhere in the borough, but that is short-sighted.”
At Streatham and West Norwood primaries there were more than two applications for every place this year.
Immanuel & St Andrew Primary in Buckleigh Road, Streatham, Jubilee Primary in Tulse Hill and Stockwell Primary in Stockwell Road plan to make bulge classes from September.
That means an extra 90 places.
Immanuel & St Andrew wants £5million to build new classrooms. Currently the two forms of entry are taught in temporary cabins.
Meanwhile, Sudbourne Primary School in Hayter Road, Brixton, wants to expand into vacant land in nearby Acre Lane.
Councillor Pete Robbins, Lambeth’s cabinet member for children and young people’s services, said: “The council cannot justify diverting our very limited resources on creating new primary school places in an area where there are spare places at other very good schools nearby.
“This is in stark contrast to the south of the borough where an explosion in pupil numbers in Norwood and Streatham has put huge pressure on primary school places.
“We must concentrate our limited resources where the need is greatest to prevent children in the south of the borough facing long commutes to school or larger class sizes.”
Under Lambeth council’s last Labour administration, school buildings were sold to raise cash.
They included Haselrigge Primary School in Clapham, Santley Primary in Brixton, Ashby Mill Primary in Brixton, Dick Sheppard School in Tulse Hill, Effra Primary in Brixton and Grove House Primary in Tulse Hill.
Kate Hoey, Labour MP for Vauxhall, demanded Lambeth council remove the Olive School from the town hall disposals list.
She said: “It is short-sighed to sell off when there are growing numbers of children in north Lambeth who cannot get into their primary school of choice.
“Lambeth should not revisit its mistakes of the past by selling off educational buildings only to discover later the need for more school places.”
For the full story, you can get a full online edition at
www.slp-e-edition.co.uk
