Tag Archives: haringey-schools

Good news on school places

Posted on by

Hurrah – my Liberal Democrat council colleagues have at last managed to get Haringey Council to hold a consultation on whether to expand Rhodes Avenue Primary school.

In May 2007 Councillor Gail Engert (Muswell Hill ward) revealed a shocking primary school place ‘black hole’ – out of the 110 children across all of Haringey who did not receive any of their four school preferences for a reception place, 25 came from Alexandra ward alone. (It’s only one out of nineteen wards, but more than one of five of the children without one of the four choices came from there.)

The consultation on whether to expand is long overdue – but it’s good to see our long-term campaigning on this paying off.

Haringey's health services

Posted on by

Surgery, then met new Head at Hornsey Girl’s School (what a great new head!), then had my usual meeting with David Sloman (CEO of Whittington Hospital – who assures me that my endless banging of the drum on how patients are treated in terms of care and compassion is now top of the list) and then on to Haringey’s new Sixth Form Centre to present a prize to one of the Haringey Heroes. This is an awards event for young people across Haringey who have showed exceptional talent, or caring, or leadership in their lives. For example – one was a carer’s award for children who have (on top of everything) to care for parents with disabilities. It is one of Haringey’s better efforts – and I was very happy to be there.

Thinking further about local health services – and watching Lord Darzi talk about the NHS plan – I am struck by the contrast between what he says – which is that polyclinics are about providing extra services – and what people are most worried about locally – which is that their doctor will be plucked from their current location and put in this amorphous ‘polyclinic’ further away.

It is still unclear to me – for example – whether our new local health facility (I doubt whether it will carry on being called a polyclinic) currently rising from a building site – will be only ‘additional’ as Darzi (and ministers) claim. When building is already taking place and this is still unclear, matters are far from as clear as they should be.

It is also still unclear what services will be provided on site and what say we the people actually will have. I have no doubt that the west of Haringey needs a new health facility and it is pretty difficult to get any money spent on us – as we are always in direct comparison to Tottenham where the need is obviously greater as an area of high deprivation and unemployment. However, there is plenty of need and unemployment this side too – and quite frankly – we all need and are entitled to proper health provision.

Four schools face closure in Haringey

Posted on by

Earlier today the Government announced that four schools in Haringey face closure. Here’s what my press release said:

Lynne Featherstone, commenting on the Government’s announcement that four schools in Haringey have been given a warning notices to improve exam performance or face closure said:

“We must challenge underperformance in our schools but threat of closure and job losses is hardly going to motivate the teachers whose help we need to drive up standards.

“I have long fought for fair funding for our local schools, so the extra money is welcome. However, this announcement seems far too much stick and not enough carrot.”

Councillor Gail Engert, Haringey Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Education added:

“I wait to see how exactly much extra money this will mean for our schools. But £400m over 638 schools nationally only works out at about £600,000 per school. This will hardly scratch the surface of the historic chronic underinvestment in Haringey’s schools.”

Three-form entry at Rhodes Avenue school?

Posted on by

The news story from my main website is pretty self-explanatory:

Liberal Democrats councillors have expressed fears that the crisis over a shortage of reception places for schoolchildren in Alexandra ward is now widening out to adjacent areas.

Of the 136 children (nearly double the number in 2006) who did not receive any of their parents’ four preferences for a reception place in September, 25 came from Alexandra ward, 17 from neighbouring Muswell Hill and 14 from next-door Bounds Green ward. Together, they make up over 40% of the total, whilst the cut-off distances around popular local schools such as Rhodes Avenue and Bounds Green continue to shrink. Liberal Democrats say that action must be taken to deal with the worsening shortfall.

Cllr Gail Engert, spokesperson for children, schools and families, has been pressing Haringey Council since the summer to undertake a feasibility study on expanding Rhodes Avenue to three-form entry, which could provide an extra 30 places to allow local children a choice of a local school.

Cllr Engert comments: “This situation is going from bad to worse, while Haringey Council just turns a blind eye. Expansion may have taken place at Tetherdown, Coleridge and Coldfall primaries, but this is now history and these schools are full. The Labour Council needs to act now to make sure that increasing numbers of parents around Alexandra are not let down.”

Local MP Lynne Featherstone adds: “It is heartbreaking having to deal with local families who can’t get a place at a much loved local schools for their child. Haringey seems paralysed by inaction when it comes to dealing with the problem in this part of the Muswell Hill. It’s time Haringey Council took up the Liberal Democrat plan for three-form entry at Rhodes Avenue.”

Bad news on school places in Haringey

Posted on by

BlackboardGlum news on school places “choice” in Haringey unfortunately.

As I report over on my website, one out of three children in Haringey have not received a place at their preferred secondary school – figures released by Haringey Council show that only 67% of children starting secondary school in 2008 would be able to attend their first preference school.

Worse still – the number of children not receiving their first place increased by 3% from last year and no progress was made in children receiving their first two preferences. Over the past four years children not receiving their first or second preference have increased from 11% in 2005 to 18% in 2006, 20% in 2007 and 20% in 2008.

This has been a problem since before I became a councillor ten years ago, and the Liberal Democrats have constantly reminded Haringey Council that better forward planning is needed before this reaches crisis level. Again, we see a failure in planning, and again we see an increase in this figure. Labour have poured money into education without results – how long will it be until children in Haringey have the service they deserve?”

Haringey Labour remove free leisure passes for the over 65s

Posted on by

Campaigning to keep Haringey's free leisure passes for pensioners with Cllr David WinskillWent to Park Road Pools to launch a petition to reverse Haringey Labour’s ridiculous decision to remove the free passes for leisure for the over 65s.

You can sign the petition online at ourcampaign.org.uk/leisure

I did a photo op with Crouch End councillor David Winskill, and two older ladies who are incandescent (as are the three hundred who attended a meeting at Tottenham Leisure Centre last week) about Haringey Labour’s budget cut of £52,000 removing the free passes that our elderly residents currently have.

This is nuts. It’s a small sum compared to the huge Labour waste, and yet the activity, social engagement and exercise that these older residents get from using their passes to go to classes or swim or whatever is a wonderfully productive investment – not to mention the enjoyment it brings – as it helps people keep fit and happy and socialised.

My Liberal Democrat colleagues identified £3million waste in the Haringey Council budget last week. Cut that waste – not the leisure passes!

In other local news – I met the minister to put the case for fair funding of Haringey’s schools, as reported over on my website.

Busy, busy day

Posted on by

Earlier today got the figures on the funding proposal Haringey Council is getting from the Labour Government. I’ve been campaigning on fair funding for Haringey’s schools since I discovered that our schools get £736 per child less than those in neighbouring boroughs. Well the new funding proposals adds insult to injury. The gap will widen further to a £1,000 differential. I am seeking an urgent meeting with Ed Balls.

It was also the launch of Stroud Green School Children’s Centre today. This is after a series of delays, changes in staff, etc etc – and even today the Service Level Agreements weren’t signed. However – putting all that process mess out of the way – today was a lovely occasion with children helping with ‘planting’ a tree and a whole class singing to entertain us. This is part of a program to create 18 children’s centres in Haringey. Ten down – eight to do.

This is the first one to be constructed in a primary school and cost half a million. It’s much needed in the community but because of Haringey’s delays they missed the September term time start. But they open in a week or so – and there are some very lucky children who will be going there.

Iain Dale and I were then the speakers on ‘new media’ for the NCVO. Always enjoyable to share a platform with the uber-blogger! Then to Parliament for a series of votes before heading over to the Haringey Civic Centre for a Police consultative meeting.

Packed chamber as the IPPC had come back, as they had promised, to talk to local people, campaigners and the Sylvesters (Roger Sylvester‘s parents) about their report which basically resulted in no recommendations for discipline from the police – or indeed anything much.

Well – you can understand in Haringey where we have had a number of black deaths in custody – and no action on any of them – that the people in attendance were not best pleased. Actually it is really traumatic to see and hear the pain still in the room – eight years on – because they feel that justice has not been done. It is too hard to understand how a man could be dragged naked into the freezing night and die.

At least the Haringey Community and Police Consultative Group gives a forum where the anguish can be voiced – but it’s pretty cold comfort for a family who don’t believe justice has or will ever be done for their son’s death.

Good news on Haringey schools and vulture funds

Posted on by

Good news on the fair funding for education in Haringey. Haringey Youth Council are going to join the campaign and are going to start their own petition!

Excellent to have their support – and on an issue which primarily affects them – spot on! I had a huge response to this campaign so far and to the petition I’ve been organising.

My next move is to present the petition to the Government – and that reminds me – don’t think Gordon B has yet answered my letter following up on my question at Prime Minister’s Questions a couple of weeks ago. May have to start nagging!

One other piece of good news – The People yesterday ran a piece on my concerns over vulture funds. Good to get the story out beyond the usual obvious places! All adds to the pressure I hope.

Haringey school funding: two pieces of unwelcome news

Posted on by

As if it isn’t bad enough that our kids in Haringey are getting £736 less per head than kids in neighbouring boroughs for schooling, this week we found out that our schools are in financial crisis – with questioning from Lib Dem councillors bringing to light figures figures showing that 19 Haringey schools will end the year in debt totalling over £1.5m.

To add insult to injury – the Government is about to try and claw back 5% of any school’s surplus (so any that aren’t in debt will be hammered anyway for prudence). David Laws, Lib Dem Schools Spokesperson, was on to this like ton of bricks. And in usual copycat fashion – D Cameron went on it at Prime Minister’s Questions. I think he just goes through our LibDem releases and borrows everything!

The good news is that I think Brown will get cold feet and retract from this claw back – which he bloody well should – as schools will have already earmarked the funding for use.