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ITEM EX8

EXECUTIVE – 14 OCTOBER 2003

SECONDARY EDUCATION IN THE BANBURY AREA

Report by Director for Learning & Culture

1. Members will recall that on 13 May 2003 the Executive considered a short report on this topic, arising from which it was agreed that feasibility work should be undertaken on a locally generated suggestion for reorganisation (i.e. that Drayton and Blessed George Napier Schools should effectively swap sites, thus permitting the relocated Drayton School to amalgamate with Banbury School on one campus). Members also asked that any other ideas which might come forward should also be carefully considered. Officers were instructed to make an initial report back to the Executive "by the end of the Summer".
2. The report now offered is briefer than has originally been intended. The following paragraphs note some of the ideas which have emerged from local debate, offer an initial (but not full) assessment of their potential for promoting higher standards, but also note some variables which it is felt are not sufficiently controlled at the present time to reach firmer conclusions.
3. The current situation in each of the three schools under discussion was outlined in the May report. Two of the schools (Banbury, and Drayton) have been subject to full Ofsted inspection in 2003. Whilst each of the schools display some good features, each also has its problems which need solutions:

• In the case of Blessed George Napier Catholic School (BGN), the principal issue is one of shortage of space, over-crowding and a need for building improvements. Responsibility for finding a solution to these needs ultimately rests with the school governors and Archdiocese of Birmingham. Site potential is very limited.
• In Drayton School, the site/premises aspects are generally positive, and there are some signs of learning improvement in KS3 particularly. That said, the latest KS3 scores are still well below national average attainments. The overall educational health of the school remains a severe concern (the Summer 2003 GCSE results placed it in the weakest 5% of secondary school nationally, with 13% only of the Year 11 students achieving 5 or more higher grade passes). The school has severe financial problems: the management estimates that a roll of 750-800 is required to be able to offer sufficient curriculum breadth and operate on a break-even basis. Until a roll of around that figure is reached (and there are no suggestions it will be on present trends), inherited deficits will grow, and the students will lose out. The projection from trends suggests the deficit may be around £450,000 by 2005.
• Banbury School occupies a generous site, and the school has improved markedly in recent years. The recent Ofsted inspection reported positively on a wide range of features of the school. Nevertheless, there are major needs, and potentially very costly needs, principally related to site/buildings. In the words of the Ofsted report: "The school environment is poor. Most of the buildings need replacing. Drastic rationalisation of the whole site is long overdue".

4. A number of ideas came forward over the summer period. In some cases, a simple misunderstanding may lay behind the presented ideas (e.g. it was suggested that a special needs unit, funded direct by the County Council in addition to the normal delegated budget, be established in the school, to help some of the more needy children. In fact, such funding already exists as a supplement to Drayton’s Fair Funding formula share). Another idea is that the school should seek to be a "Centre of Vocational Excellence", this being a term originating in the Further Education sector, whereby colleges might specialise, and offer work to a high level, in a clearly defined vocational area. The concept is not really appropriate in a school setting, particularly in a school whose pupils are all of compulsory school age. That said, it is clear that discussions need to take place with all concerned to explore how the recent relaxations of the 14+ curriculum requirements can be exploited for the benefit of young people in the area.
5. A number of local commentators have, of course, queried the need for any structural change at all. There is a real issue here. There is sometimes a danger in seeing structural change as a solution to all ills. It is clear that something must be done in the Banbury area. It would be possible (subject to finance), to rebuild the Banbury School premises on the present site, and leave Drayton where it is. It may be possible (further research would be needed here also) to leave Banbury where it is, but to sell a part of the Banbury campus to BGN, given its space deficiencies. Again, Drayton would stay where it is. Such ideas prompt the inevitable question: "Is it possible for Drayton to recover, and grow, from its current base, and in its present location?" Over recent years, a very high level of external input has been offered to Drayton School, this primarily being designed to promote systemic change within the school. Whilst there are signs of progress in restricted areas, the overall performance of the school, as measured by GCSE performance, remains low, and the financial position is not sustainable (see paragraph 3). The "do nothing" option is so not to be recommended. At the very least it would necessitate strong action to tackle Drayton’s budget situation. This could only be by cutting expenditure (necessitating redundancies), with the consequent negative impact on standards, or changing the Fair Funding formula to give the school extra money. This would be at the expense of other schools. If the financial issues within a "no structural change" option can be solved, the question then arises over what measure can be taken to improve Drayton systemically. Here it may be necessary to consider radical modification, particularly in KS4. Whether this is an area initiative, or recognition of diversity as Drayton changes its historical course structure, is a matter to be addressed.
6. If structural change is required to improve local secondary school provision, the following options may be worthy of further exploration. However, there is no ideal, simple, quick "fix" to the present position. In all cases, it would be prudent to plan for an increase in places in community schooling from the present 2300 to approximately 3000, this figure being the headline product of structure plan proposals but with some flexibility retained for the future. The location of new housing is not finalised.

Option A:

7. This is the "school swap" option, i.e. move BGN to the Drayton School site etc. Feasibility work has been carried out into this possibility. The Archdiocese of Birmingham has surveyed the Drayton site to assess its suitability for their purposes, and agents of the County Council have in turn examined the present BGN site. Issues such as the agreements surrounding the sports facilities on the Drayton site have been checked, as have land tenures. In physical terms, the swap is feasible, though to arrive at a reliable cost estimate, further work would need to be undertaken on how the Banbury School and BGN sites (which would house a single community school in the future) might be developed.
8. Whilst there has been talk of this option as a merger, or amalgamation, in educational law this concept does not really exist. To achieve a unification of the two community schools in the town, it would be necessary to either close one school and expand the other (the Governing Body and senior management of the expanding school would be key here), or close both schools, and open a new legal entity. In this latter case, staff disturbance is augmented in that all posts would be at risk. At the end of the day, it would be for the County Council to decide which method of reorganisation to adopt, after consultation with the Unions.
9. Members will not need reminding that the suggestion of the school swap model provoked widespread disquiet in the town some months ago. Home-school travel patterns were a factor causing concern, though it is fair to say also there was some antipathy deriving from principle also. The plan would produce one very large community school in the town, and fears over school size are a factor (as in Wantage).
10. In many ways the reaction to this option reflects the dilemma facing councillors. This option has the potential to match the educational challenges. It could build on a successful management team in one community school, solve the physical problems, provide scope for post 14 curriculum diversity (in conjunction with the college), and tackle the low expectations which have a detrimental effect on standards. The causes of dissent, by contrast, derive from "non-educational" aspects, principally travel to school patterns. The extent of these need to be seen in context: the distance from Drayton to Banbury School is 2 miles.

Option B:

11. The suggestion has been made that we leave BGN on its present site (see paragraph 3 re site restrictions), but then run the Banbury site and Drayton site under single management, as an upper school/lower school model (akin to that found in Thame). Split-site schools are never an ideal, though they can be made to work. If community schooling in Banbury did go on a split-site model, an effect on travel patterns would ensue. For example, younger children from central/south Banbury may need to travel across town to the Drayton site, with pupils from that area in turn, age 14+, travelling across to the present Banbury site. That said, there are potentially some positive educational gains within the model. It would allow the space and resources to provide a flexible curriculum (KS3 at Drayton: KS4 at Banbury), thus giving a greater probability of matching courses to abilities, strengths and proclivities.

Option C:

12. The possibility of Federation has been raised. This is a relatively new concept from Government, and under it two, or more, schools can operate under single management. This can either happen on a minimal change/goodwill basis (e.g. two or three schools each retaining its own Governing Body, but electing to be serviced by one Headteacher), or the federation can be "hard" in that a single Governing Body would replace the present arrangements. A Federation need not be permanent. If the concept were applied in Banbury, the reality would be very much akin to operating the present arrangement, but with one Head only and quite possibly without even the educational rationale behind the Option B model.

Option D:

13. This suggestion involves the sale of Drayton, with consequent investment in the Banbury School site. The Banbury School site is large, and has the potential within DfES regulations to accommodate all the community schooling. (As noted in paragraph 5, there are c.2300 children in the two community schools, Drayton and Banbury, and planned housing developments in the area over the coming years, make it prudent to plan for a potential 3000 such pupils. The actual roll may well be less than this, though it is important to retain some site capacity (if not buildings as such) for future operational flexibility). Further work would need to be undertaken on the feasibility of this particular option. For example, the future of the joint use sports facilities on the Drayton site would need examination if site closure were an option. Also, capital investment would be required "up front" to create the necessary accommodation on the Banbury site. This could be a major block. The model assumes BGN would remain on its present location, though the possibility would still be there for this school to acquire the Drayton site on the market if it so wished (and was able). As yet, consultations have not taken place with the planning authorities, or traffic engineers, over the implications of this particular model.

Future Variables

14. It is clear from the above that we are some way off an agreed consensus on a way forward. Reaching such a consensus may become more difficult, given three variables which are currently not yet controlled:

(i) As mentioned above, the Government has relaxed the requirements in respect of the 14-19 curriculum. In short, there is now a stronger emphasis on flexibility, new course patterns, courses straddling the traditional school/FE divide, and developing courses with strong vocational roots. Preliminary discussions have taken place, and more are planned, on how such developments may actually look in Banbury. (Members will possibility be aware that another factor locally has been the reorganisation of college structure in Oxfordshire: the former Oxford College of Further Education, Rycotewood College, and North Oxfordshire College (Banbury) effectively closed this summer and have been replaced by a new single, multi-site, college, with new management.)

(ii) Whilst, in theory, structural change in Banbury could happen without major capital investment, the reality is that such investment is highly desirable because of the inherited stock (see paragraph 3 above). Officers recently attended a DfES regional seminar on the Building Schools for the Future initiative. Under this initiative, the Government proposes to release large swathes of money, over a 10-year period, to carry out major renewal/refurbishment of secondary schools. The County Council has until December to submit an outline application (not detailed plans). The Government will then determine in what planning window money might be released for Oxfordshire. Thus, they may give us an indication that – say – we should plan on an assumption that £150m is available for Oxfordshire secondary school renewal in the period 2008-2010. It is clear that the Government is going to prioritise initial investment in urban areas displaying high levels of deprivation. It is also clear that, despite the socio-economic indicators in certain wards, the Banbury area as a whole does not score high on Government deprivation indices (principally free school meals). The implications of this for Banbury reorganisation are that we may well achieve our goal of, for example, major physical improvements in Banbury School, but not for some years. The Council should know by Easter 2004 in which period money is likely to be released. The Governors of Banbury School are, quite naturally, keen that this investment be used to sort their problems. They may even wish to make premises improvements a condition of their co-operation with any reorganisation pattern. This could present difficulties in that long-term planning, which is a feature of the Building Schools initiative, is difficult to sustain within democratic structures.

(iii) A third factor is that the Building Schools initiative is based on geographical localities (not individual establishments), and DfES state clearly that The Warriner School, Bloxham, should be included in any Banbury area considerations. This school is interested to developing a Sixth Form (it is currently a 11-16 school).

15. Items (i) and (iii) taken together raise the issue of the Learning & Skills Council (LSC) Strategic Area Reviews. The LSC is the body with overall responsibility for post 16 education in Britain: schools and LEAs are providers, not planners as such. Each of the LSC regions, nationally, is to carry out a Strategic Area Review, with a view to any consequent changes coming on-stream from 2005 onwards. It is unclear how far discussions can go locally on 14-19 delivery mechanisms, given this Strategic Review. It is also unclear whether there may be a planning blight period during the review process.

Conclusion

16. The factors summarised above, plus the extended options listed, are such that this report should be regarded as a "holding" report only. A fuller, and hopefully more conclusive, report is suggested for early 2004 to include a fuller options appraisal. It is imperative that each option is judged against key educational questions:

• Will it help overcome barriers to pupils’ achievement?
• Will it make education more "attractive" to doubters?
• Will it help raise educational standards in Banbury?
• Will it help promote better value added in local schools?

17. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to note the emergence of the options identified in the report as a basis for the carrying out of a full options appraisal, for report to the Executive in the New Year.

September 2003