From the Richmond Inclusive Schools Campaign group:
The Richmond Inclusive Schools Campaign has been set up to oppose the Council’s decision to spend our Council tax buying the only local site that is big enough for a new secondary school (Richmond Adult and Community College in Clifden Road, Twickenham - formerly Twickenham Girls School) and giving it to the Catholic Church to set up a Catholic Secondary School whose admissions policy will favour children of Catholic parents from a wide swathe of London and discriminate against local children. There is already a serious shortage of secondary school places in Fulwell/Twickenham, especially for boys, and the number of children going into local primary schools is increasing all the time.
There is now an online petition urging Richmond Council to rethink.
It reads:
We, the undersigned, petition the council to ensure that every state-funded school opening in the borough from now on is inclusive, so that no child can be denied a place in a good local school because of the religion or belief of their parents. Rising pupil numbers mean the borough needs more secondary schools. Sites are hard to find and money is tight. Yet the Council has given top priority to offering a site for a Voluntary Aided Catholic school, which will effectively be closed to a majority of the borough’s children. It needs to think again.
The website for Richmond Inclusive Schools Campaign is www.richmondinclusiveschools.org.uk if you want to find out more.
Comments
So, let me understand this properly. All those Church of England primaries - St.Stephen's, St.Mary's etc - ARE NOT 'Faith" schools?
Ian on 2011-08-12 10:11:14 +0000The term 'faith school' is used loosely; the correct term is 'church school'. What matters is the set of admission criteria used to decide which child gets a place, which vary. Some require church attendance and some do not. See, for Richmond's schools: tinyurl.com/3pw4nac
In general Catholic schools use much stricter criteria, particularly for secondary schools, requiring regular attendance at Mass and a recommendation from the local priest; here is the admission policy for the Catholic Richard Challoner School for Boys in New Malden:
'Where the number of applicants exceed the number of places within any of the above categories, the following tie breakers will be applied in the order stated, using the following criteria:
A: A boy with a brother on roll . . B: A boy attending one of the following 7 Catholic primary schools in the Kingston or Sutton Deanery . . C: Distance from the school, . . ' www.kingston.gov.uk/sif_rchallonerforma2011.pdf
The minutes of the July 21 council cabinet meeting that decided to buy the site are at: cabnet.richmond.gov.uk/mgConvert2PDF.aspx?ID=2778&T=1
There is a lot of further detail in the 52 comments to this RTT story about the petition (which now has 750+ signatures) : tinyurl.com/3wk7gs3
This is not about the merits or not of religious education: it is about what to do with this site, in a borough that needs to open two new community schools open to all by 2015 to keep up with rising numbers. No other sites for new schools have been found, or even suggested.
Chris Squire on 2011-08-12 12:00:48 +0000INVITATION TO ALL
If you would like to write an article supporting the Catholic Secondary, please do so and send it to content@stmgrts.org.uk. If it is publishable, I will do so.
Please do NOT write me any more nasty emails.
Thank you,
Peter
Peter @ stmgrts.org.uk on 2011-08-13 10:01:10 +0000This is the case in favour, such as it is:
Cabinet meeting Jul 21: ' . . Lord True [Leader] . . assured those present that the Council respected diversity and saw a Catholic school as a way of achieving this not undermining it. The Cabinet Member for Schools [Cllr Paul Hodgins] also reiterated this point. He agreed that another secondary school would be needed but that this was part of the plan and a site was actively being sought. He also addressed the following points:
The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources [Cllr G Samuel] addressed those present. He reported that in April after a debate in full council brought about by the presentation of a petition in favour of a Catholic School, there was cross party support for the principle of a Catholic School; including a speech in favour by the Shadow Cabinet Member for Education. He argued that after a show of support with no objections it would be hypocritical for Cabinet not to act when a suitable site presented itself. He assured those who had made representations that he respected the argument that education should be secular but he felt that diversity was encouraged by the creation of faith schools, not threatened . .
Councillor True spoke to those present about the council's intentions. He said that Cabinet heard and respected the arguments involved and was committed to increasing school places and that this would include the provision of a Catholic Secondary School. It was true that the Diocese must make representation to the Secretary of State to waive competition on the creation of a Faith School and the council would support them in this process. . . '
Full minutes: twickenhamlibdems.co.uk/en/article/2011/507289/purchase-of-clifden-road-site-site-for-the-provision-of-school-places-council-minute-july-21
Chris Squire on 2011-08-14 11:01:40 +0000Readers may be interested in the following links which may provide a more general background:
- www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2011/may/07/catholic-education-faith-schools
- www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/2011/01/17/gove-asked-to-consider-new-model-of-catholic-academy
- www.richmondfreeschool.org.uk/index.php/the-site
Mary on 2011-08-18 00:04:05 +0000The petition will be submitted to a meeting of the full Council on Tuesday 13th September at 7pm at York House, Twickenham.The Richmond Inclusive Schools Campaign [RISC] will get a 5 mins speech to put their case, then there will be three 5 minute speeches from Councillors.
RISC write: ' . . [we are planning] a fun event for the family at the front of York House, starting from around 5.30pm till 7pm. We're still in the planning stage but are thinking about balloons, face painting.... '
The bid for the 'Richmond Free School' has been turned down; they say: " . . We have had some feedback from the DfE . . [they] were concerned that there was not enough evidence of demand for school places in Richmond, . . " www.richmondandtwickenhamtimes.co.uk/news/richmondnews/9223352.No_demand_for_Richmond_free_school__says_DfE/?ref=eb
Chris Squire on 2011-09-01 11:44:33 +0000The petition was presented last night. I have published Cllr Malcolm Eady's speech for the Lib Dems at:
twickenhamlibdems.co.uk/en/article/2011/511916/the-inclusive-schools-petition-the-liberal-democrat-response
Chris Squire on 2011-09-14 10:39:25 +0000Update October 06: the church has made a formal application to Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, for consent to "publish proposals" for a Voluntary Aided school on the Clifden Road site. This is required to avoid the Council having to hold a competition for the new school, or having to set it up as an Academy (which would have a maximum 50 % faith-based admissions). His decision is a closed process and we don't know what's happening. See: twickenhamlibdems.co.uk/en/article/2011/512963/the-new-school-for-twickenham-what-happens-next for more detail.
Gove will not respond to letters from the public but he will to a letter from an MP on their behalf. So if you object to the church's application and live in the Twickenham constituency, please write to Vince Cable [ cablev@parliament.uk or by letter to: 2a Lion Road,Twickenham TW1 4JQ] copying ministers@education.gsi.gov.uk . A letter is better, if you can make the time to write it.
Chris Squire on 2011-10-06 11:31:08 +0000