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School Places at Dobcroft Infant & Junior Schools Consultation Responses

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School Places at Dobcroft Infant & Junior Schools Consultation Responses APPENDIX 1: Consultation Responses School Places at Dobcroft Infant & Junior Schools Consultation Responses 1 Page 135 Dobcroft Infant School Governing Body: We refer to the ongoing consultation process in respect of the proposed expansion of Dobcroft Infant school. As a governing body we recognise the pressure on spaces that has evolved over recent years in the South West of the City. We do not wish to see a ny ‘in - catchment’ children turned away from a school within the region. Equally, we have a duty to ensure the wellbeing of pupils at Dobcroft Infant School both now and into the future. We outline the governors’ considerations as follows. 2015 decision We note the temporary expansion of Dobcroft Infant School in 2015 has already been decided and will make separate representation in this respect. The council should, however, be aware that the absence of any consultation and openness in the decision making process has alienated parents. The lack of trust and sense of betrayal cannot be underestimated. The decision is a short sighted fix to a perceived immediate problem that is not evident from the data. Current forecasts suggest that 2015 will have no greater pressures than 2014. This temporary expansion will result in more ‘out of catchment’ admissions building pressure in later years, due to increased sibling preferences. The perceived need for this temporary expansion stems from 2014 applications, which were with the council in January 2014. It is of immense frustration that it took almost 12 months for the council to reach a decision, and then leave just 6 months for the school to put all the necessary resources in place. The school will cope with these enforced changes primarily because we have a proactive staff and leadership team. Although we would expect the council to provide sufficient funds to support the accommodation of 30 more children who will be with both schools for a total of 7 years, whatever the 2016 decision. 2016 consultation We welcomed the opportunity to consult on the 2016 decision. We appreciate the time taken by council officers to address our numerous questions and opportunity to analyse their data. The drop in sessions also enabled parents to air their concerns. The length of the process is up for debate but the lead in period of less than a week has not helped alleviate the scepticism of the process held by many. The school had little time in which to liaise with parents and no information with which to allay any fears. At no point have the council attended our school to explain the issues to parents. Those officers who attended drop in sessions were able to write things down, but not set out the issue in a way that enables parents to engage in consultation based on evidence. The lack of detailed information through the whole process has been frustrating to all involved. The data that was made available (current numbers in age cohorts from 0-3) led many parents to reach the conclusion that there is no issue in our catchment. This has created considerable anger and frustration amongst parents and the wider community. Staff and governors at the school have borne the brunt of this anger, which seems wholly unjust and avoidable had future forecasts been presented in a way that estimated the impacts of inward migration and priority applications. In essence, we as a governing body are being asked to consult on the extension of the school without sight of any detailed solutions to address the obvious impact of 120 more children in a school. 2 Page 136 The need for additional spaces- data analysis The council published population numbers by age and by catchment. When pushed, it made available previous year’s population data and percenta ges of what proportions of children in each catchment chose their catchment school. Our governing body had to piece all this together in order to estimate future pressure in the absence of the council doing that work or putting estimates in the public domain. Whilst the council did usefully publish our analysis under FAQs, it seems unsatisfactory that we had to do this work. Based on analysis we agree that there is a need for more spaces in the South West region. We equally recognise that this will in part be a result of pressure on the Dobcroft intake. However, the data shows far more pressure on Totley and Ecclesall catchments. It has not been demonstrated at all how the extension of Dobcroft will therefore solve the areas with greatest problems within South West Sheffield. It is also likely to detract from schools such as Holt House and Nether Edge. We do not want to turn away children from catchment as in 2014. However, the data suggests that the current proposal appears to only solve one part (and not the greatest part) of the problem in the South West Sheffield area. It is completely unclear at present how the anticipated high numbers of catchment applications that are unsuccessful in Totley and Ecclesall will be reduced as a result of expanding a neighbouring catchment school. The forecast pressures based on our analysis are presented in Annex One. DIS capacity to accommodate 90 additional children . The infant school site is tight with limited external area. The school buildings are tired and require constant maintenance stretching an already pressurised budget. The school has two mobile units which are in total 36 sq m smaller than government guidance. There is an opportunity through a thorough planning process to improve the learning experience with new modern classrooms and improved external areas to mitigate any reduction in space. Unfortunately, the council to date has not provided meaningful proposals which might address some of the schools concerns. The initial indicators are that the mobiles will be retained, the community hub extended and utilised as a class room. These proposals fall well short of an acceptable solution and will put unacceptable pressure on the children's learning environment. We understand the consultation is part of a longer process. However, in order to provide meaningful feedback it is reasonable to expect a decent level of information about how a solution might look. Impact on children’s learning environment of a larger cohort and school We trust the council has taken due consideration of the impact of year sizes of 120. This will change the school dynamics and impact on the environment particularly for the FS intake. This will put our school alongside Lydgate as the biggest intake in the city. We have concerns about such large intakes being overwhelming for young children, particularly in the transition from pre-school setting into foundation. The teaching staff are confident that a further class per year can be managed. However, the school will need to be adequately adapted requiring sufficient funding to address the significant issues arising from an increase of 90 pupils. Our concerns about the learning environment include: 3 Page 137 - Playground congestion created by extra pupils - Sufficient classroom space rather than use of mobile units - Ensuring ratios of toilets & showers to pupils & staff is satisfactory - Ensuring intervention spaces are within the school - Pressure on the hall & dining space, which is already extremely congested in terms of lunchtime and PE provision - Potentially reducing communal resources such as the library and IT space - Threats to play space as a result of increased buildings on the site, and/or additional car parking Requirements for the extension of Dobcroft Infant School Despite the major issues, still not addressed by the council, we acknowledge the permanent extension of DIS may go ahead. In such circumstances, the governing body, leadership and staff team will work with council officers to deliver the best solution for the pupils of this school. We have considered at great length what would be required as a minimum to maintain a positive learning environment. - To limit congestion in the playground better use of the rear area of the school is required. - Four new classrooms (removing the 2 existing mobiles) for foundation. Covered areas from each classroom, landscaped areas and outside storage for equipment to meet with the requirements of the foundation stage curriculum. - New classrooms require their own toilet block with shower facility. - Intervention spaces in recognition of a number of children's needs. - A hall area and dance space that can accommodate at least 120 pupils for year group assemblies as well as have enough slots for PE and lunchtime. - The removal of the library and resultant loss of mitigation space will need to be accommodated elsewhere in the school for KS1 children. - Additional staff toilets and increased PPA/staffroom space. Highways Road safety, traffic congestion and parking are serious concerns. The current situation is less than satisfactory with inconsiderate driving and parking the norm. The addition of 210 pupils many of whom could be out of catchment will only add to the pressure on the surrounding road networks. We appreciate that traffic issues will be considered as part of any planning application. We also understand that a range of traffic calming, safety and parking initiatives can be put in place to alleviate many problems. They do, however, need to be considered in the context of the current consultation to address issues raised by parents and residents. Additionally, any measures will carry a significant cost. 4 Page 138 We note the need for more on site car parking has been discussed by the council. We further acknowledge th at there are solutions but primarily to the detriment of the pupil’s external environment. To replace playground space with car parking whilst encouraging healthy life styles would be hypocritical.
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