On 3 Mar, 22:02, Colin Williams <
[email protected]> wrote:
> On Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:54:12 +0000, Tom Crispin wrote:
> >>Hello,
>
> >>Would any contributors to this thread mind if I notify Private Eye about
> >>this? They are always on the lookout for PPP/PFI cockups and also take
> >>an interest in planning and education matters. I'd like to direct them
> >>to this thread if I may.
>
> > No problem at all, I'd considered contacting Private Eye myself.
>
> As it happens, I work in a planning consultancy office, albeit in an IT
> support role. I had a brief chat with one of the planners who says a
> breach might have occurred if there was a stipulation to maintain the
> cycle parking facility. Also, the removal of the cycle stands and
> creation of car parking spaces is itself likely to require planning
> permission. I have emailed a summary to Private Eye; thanks to yourself
> and James for posting this and locating the planning document.
I'm Monica Cross - the Principal of st Matthew Academy - and I'm
staggered that all these inaccurate assumptions being made about us!!
Why did no-one simply e-mail or phone and ask why the cycle hoops had
disappeared from their original site? The site and the hoops were
decided , without consultation, by the architect who was solely
concerned that the facility he had to provide under planning would
match the style of his building - not that it was appropriate for our
cyclists! The original site was tucked away at the front of the
building - without any weather protection or security from damage &
interference from students, squirrels, (with whom we are overrun), or
bird droppings. We are very keen on our green travel plan and very
concerned to increase the number of cyclists. We have - at our own,
not inconsiderable expense, re-sited a large number of the hoops to
line the small car park. This is a deliberate visual reminder to
drivers of the alternative, healthy meands of transport and also
serves as a visual model to our younger students who can see the
cycles constantly. The original cycle site has been re-surfaced - with
a better surface and is waiting for the installation of individual,
lockable, 'bike-away' cycle lockers which are due on 17th March. These
have been requested by staff, whose cycling numbers have already
doubled. The area is, in the meantime, being used to only temporarily
to park our school mini-buses - which have their own allocated parking
bay - which we will access once the predecessor primary building is
demolished. St Matthew Academy replaces 2 failed predecessor schools -
a boys secondary and a primary. Not a single student from these
schools cycled to school - having moved into our new building only
last week - we already have 3 cycling students and are working on more
- including the exopense as soon as the weather improves - of
providing cycle training for interested students and the proposal to
form a cycling club in the summer term.
The assumption by some that the Academy has been paid for by a PFI
arrangement is wrong. The Academy's sponsor is the RC Archdiocese of
Southwark whose schools it has replaced. The capital for the buildings
comes from them and directly from the DCSF. The major teaching unions
are not all entirely against Academies - and their objections are not
that these schools "exist... to serve shareholders". Their objections
were almost entirely based on the freedom of Academies to pay more
than the national payscales for staf and to have different hours and
conditions. Academies were created to provide an alternative for the
children at the bottom of the heap!! The Academy is serving the
deprived areas of Lewisham and Greenwich. Half our students receive
free school meals, well over half are from families below the poverty
line. 43% of our students have special educational needs. We are far
from elitist! Towards the end of May we are having a Community Open
Evening - please try and suspend your prejudices and actually come and
see for yourselves what we are about.
Monica -
[email protected]
