Local Lib Dem MP Lynne Featherstone is urging that a meeting cancelled by the Government on the funding for improving Fortismere’s school buildings should go ahead without delay. A meeting has now been scheduled for May 10 th, and follows dismay expressed by the MP that an original meeting, between Fortismere Governors, Lynne Featherstone MP and the Government scheduled for 25 April had been cancelled on the explicit instructions of the Cabinet Office.

Ms Featherstone says that the Cabinet Office, on learning of the details of this meeting, specifically instructed officials to cancel the meeting because of the ‘purdah’ period during the local elections. However the meeting is parliamentary business which should not have to wait because of Government sensitivities over Haringey’s political future.

The meetings is even more urgent now that following meetings between Fortsimere and the Council, Haringey wants the Governors to sign up to an agreement which, outside of the very welcome, but not nearly enough £2m extra funding from the Building Schools for the Future Fund, asks that Fortismere agrees to sell some of its assets to provide capital funding to fill in the funding gap created by the Council’s low allocation to the school from the BSF fund.

Lynne Featherstone said:

“I am hugely concerned that Fortismere may be forced to sell off some of its land – so that it can afford to rebuild or replace its 6th form block and other sub-standard buildings. The offer of £2million extra from the BSF fund is welcome – but it still leaves Fortismere at a substantial financial disadvantage if the buildings are to be replaced. Selling off green space should not be the price that Fortismere has to pay to provide decent school buildings.

“The Building for the Future funding is supposed to address the failing condition of school buildings. And whilst the criteria used to allocate the BSF funding quite rightly prioritises deprivation, I am hopeful that at the rescheduled meeting with the Government and governors ofFortismere and myself now re-arranged for May 10 – we will be able to convince the Government to agree to this vital extra funding.”

Note:

Purdah is the term given when civil servants and local government officers and not allowed to be seen supporting any political party. In local government it is called approximately a month before elections and means that local government officials are not allowed make announcement that could be interpreted as supporting one political party.