Issue - meetings

To assist Members, the following documents are attached:-

·         Copy of the report of the Chief Officer (Education and Youth) - School Modernisation - School Standards and Organisation Act 2013 - Ysgol Llanfynydd

·         Copy of the Record of Decision

·         Copy of the Call In Notice

That, having considered the decision, the Overview & Scrutiny Committee is satisfied with the explanation which it has received, and it is in order for the decision to be implemented.

The Call-in related to the decision of the Cabinet from its meeting held on 19 April 2016 relating to School Modernisation - School Standards and Reorganisation Act 2013 - Ysgol Llanfynydd.  The Call-in notice had been signed by four Members of the Council.  To assist Members, the following documents had been circulated with the agenda:-

(a)     A copy of the procedure for dealing with a called-in item.

(b)     A copy of the report considered by Cabinet on 19 April 2016.

(c)     A copy of the Cabinet Record of Decision No. 3254.

(d)     A copy of the Call-in notice signed by Councillors Hilary Isherwood, Dave Mackie, Nigel Steele-Mortimer and Alison Halford.

Whilst Councillor Chris Bithell understood the concerns of those affected by the proposal to close the school, he spoke about the difficulty in reaching decisions such as this, in light of the reduced funding from central Government.

The Chairman invited the Call-in signatories to address the Committee.

Councillor Hilary Isherwood read out the reasons for the Call-in as set out in the notice.  She spoke about the consequences of school closure upon the community and pointed out that the range of adaptations to the school benefited children with special medical needs and were not available at other schools in the vicinity.  She said that incorrect data had been used to report the capacity for the school, as identified in the Objection Report and did not reflect the reduction in capacity arising from changes to the school in 2011.  She referred to page 21 of the School Organisation Statutory Code on determining the capacity of enlarged school premises, and questioned the reasons for the statutory proposals given the criteria set out.  She went on to state that at 66, Ysgol Llanfynydd had the 7^th highest capacity in Flintshire and should therefore not have been included in the first round of proposed closures, which would have allowed time to work on increasing school numbers.  Other sections of the Code were also highlighted, including the duties on local authorities in determining proposals where objections had been made.

In respect of costs, Councillor Isherwood pointed out that the efficiency stated would be a one-off and she questioned the need for a roof replacement on the school building, adding that future maintenance costs had not been taken into consideration for other schools.  In addition, she said that there had been no response to the issue on income generated from solar panels and that a viable business case for a reduced budget for the school had allegedly not been appropriately considered.  In terms of process, she pointed out that the statutory notice should have been issued to the school’s governing body despite regular contact by the Chair of Governors with the 21^st Century Schools’ team.  She stated that the school had been given a Category 2 ‘yellow’ rating by GwE with capacity for improvement and that the comments made by Estyn in the consultation report were out-of-date as the school had last been  ...  view the full minutes text for item 74

That Ysgol Llanfynydd be closed as of 31/08/16 with pupils transferring to other schools in accordance with parental preference.

The Chief Officer (Education and Youth) introduced the report on School Modernisation – School Standards and Reorganisation Act 2013 – Ysgol Llanfynydd.

            Following consideration of the committee and consultation report at Cabinet on 19^th January 2016, a Statutory Proposal was issued for Ysgol Llanfynydd on 29^th January 2016 which ran until 26^th February 2016.

            The areas of concern during the objection period were explained as:

·         Concerns on the accuracy of data and evidence in the consultation document (including cost of repair work) and concerns that the Council hadn’t followed process

·         Impact on the community/future use of the site should the school close

·         Opinion that federation was a viable option, concern that the Council was not actively encouraging federation

·         Opinion that closing schools should not be about money

·         Traffic and transport

·         Admission and transition arrangements

·         Potential housing developments not taken into consideration

·         Impact on children

·         Parental preference was being taken away

·         Opinion that there was not sufficient places in other schools in the area

The Council had demonstrated in its consultation documents that there was sufficient capacity within the local school network to accommodate pupils from Ysgol Llanfynydd should it close.  That view was upheld by Estyn in its response.  However, additional places if required could be established at Ysgol Parc Y Llan, Treuddyn for all current pupils of Ysgol Llanfynydd.  This would be at either no cost or minimal cost.

Based on the transport eligibility determined by the Authority, 17 pupils who lived in Flintshire and currently attended Ysgol Llanfynydd would be entitled to free home to school transport based on the assumption that those pupils transferred to their nearest school, Ysgol Parc Y Llan.

At the time of writing and presenting the report, the Governing Body of Ysgol Llanfynydd had not been able to identify a willing partnering school or schools with which to pursue a federation.  If Cabinet implemented the proposal for school organisational change at Ysgol Llanfynydd, the school would close on 31^st August 2016.  The Chief Officer explained that in making their decision, Cabinet Members should have an open mind and consider consistency factors such as resourcing of education.  The Council needed to ensure that there were sufficient number of school places, of the right type, in the right locations.  He added that on spend per pupil at schools, pupils at Ysgol Llanfynydd received £1,569 above the average spend on children at other schools.  The proposal would result in fairer and equitable funding to all pupils in the County.

The Council would take all practicable steps to ease the transition for all pupils, particularly for vulnerable learners such as those with Additional Learning Needs (ALNs) and would work alongside pupils, their parents, and the relevant schools to make appropriate transition arrangements.

Councillor Bithell reiterated that all concerns raised during the objection period had been carefully considered, explaining that the School Organisational Code had been followed at each stage of the process.  He concurred with the comments from the Chief Officer on the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 173