Return to Agenda

ITEM EX9

EXECUTIVE – 6 FEBRUARY 2002

PROPOSED EXCHANGE OF FRIDESWIDE VA AND
LAWN UPTON VC SCHOOL SITES

Report by Acting Chief Education Officer and Director of Environmental Services

1. Under the Oxford Schools Reorganisation, Frideswide CE (Aided) Middle School will close and become part of Cherwell School with effect from September 2003. The existing Lawn Upton CE (Controlled) Middle School, Littlemore will also close and a new school (Littlemore CE (Aided) Primary School) will open on part of the existing site. The remainder will be sold for housing development provided the necessary planning permission has been obtained.
2. Most of the Frideswide site is currently owned by the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd and the County Council has to acquire this from them in order to extend Cherwell School. (The Council owns the remaining part of the Frideswide site). The Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd are responsible for acquiring a site for the new Aided Primary School at Littlemore. The existing school site is owned by the County Council.

The Proposal

3. The proposal is for Oxfordshire County Council and the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd to exchange freehold ownership of these two sites. The area at Littlemore (shown hatched black on Plan 1) will be exchanged for the area of land at Frideswide School (shown hatched black on Plan 2). The sites have to be valued at open market value. The Littlemore site is around £2.25m more valuable than Frideswide. This is mainly because when the County Council sold the Frideswide site to the Diocesan Board in 1991 it imposed a covenant restricting its use to educational purposes.
4. The Diocesan Board have approached the DfES to ascertain if funding is available to make up their shortfall on the purchase price for the Littlemore site. The Diocesan Board have received a positive response from the DfES, but they have advised that funding is only available until the end of this financial year. This means that the exchange of property has to be legally completed by 31 March 2002. The Diocesan Board have to submit a formal application for funding to the DfES and obtain formal approval from the local Church School Trustees. This will be done shortly. The necessary Board approval has been obtained by them.

Financial Implications

5. The Diocesan Board are statutorily obliged to contribute 15% towards the provision of new Aided School sites. As part of the Oxford Schools Reorganisation, the County Council resolved that this would be at nil cost to the Diocesan Board. Consequently the LEA will have to cover the Diocesan Board’s 15% contribution on the shortfall of £2.25m for the Board’s acquisition of the Littlemore site. This reduces the receipt to the Council to around £1.9m. The various expenses associated with this transaction such as professional fees and stamp duty will need to be set against this receipt.
6. This receipt was not included in previous estimates but will, if it is secured, assist with the cash flow for the City Schools Reorganisation and provide some contingency for possible lower than expected receipts from other sites.

  RECOMMENDATION

7. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to approve the exchange of part of the current Lawn Upton CE school site at Littlemore currently owned by the County Council (as shown hatched black on Plan 1 appended to the report) for the part of the Frideswide School site (as shown hatched black on Plan 2) currently owned by the Diocesan Trustees (Oxford) Ltd.

ROY SMITH
Acting Chief Education Officer

DAVID YOUNG
Director of Environmental Services

Background Papers: Nil

Contact Officers: Keith Borien, Senior Education Officer Tel: (01865) 815636

January 2002

Return to TOP