Clare middle school parents hit back at Haverhill Heads

The following letter from four Clare Middle School parents has been printed this week in the Suffolk Free Press.


We would like to respond to the Haverhill headteachers' comments regarding the proposed changes from a three-tier to a two-tier school system and address the case for option three (a Clare rural community college).

Samuel Ward is currently over subscribed but Castle Manor is under subscribed. This leads us to believe that children from Clare will be sent to Castle Manor, taking away the parents option of choosing a school. Published tables show that, as of January, only 15% of pupils at Castle Manor were obtaining GCSE results at grade C or above. Former Clare Middle School pupils at Samuel Ward do exceptionally well when they take GCSEs, with 87% achieving A* to C grades.Why would having three smaller schools as against two large ones have a detrimental effect on our children when the Government is actively pursuing development of smaller schools to improve educational standards? With regards to Clare struggling to provide a full range of services for the 14-19 year olds, we must point out that under options one, two and three neither Samuel Ward, Castle Manor or Clare would be teaching 16-19-year olds, as they would be attending a sixth-form college on a separate site. Options one and two will have a detrimental effect on our children's education and well being long before the changes are complete as the current middle schools will be likely to have teachers looking for other posts now rather than later. Children falling into the Sudbury catchment area will still be attending Clare middle but the school will be running at half the capacity.

Clare Middle School has consistently shown itself to be a good school and the infrastructure is in place to continue this trend into a secondary school. The Clare school site currently provides many opportunities for after-school community activities for both children and adults, including junior (nine-13) and senior (13-18) youth clubs for about 100 children from Clare and surrounding rural areas, yoga classes, circuit training, club meetings and dance classes. As well as offering a summer holiday club for children.

We have been "informed" of the cost implications of changing Clare middle into a secondary school but costings have not been disclosed with regards to the reorganisation of Samuel Ward and Castle Manor Schools. These figures have been requested at a public meeting and are yet to be provided.

During a public meeting at Clare Middle School, Frank Stockley, a member of the review panel, stated that the "ball park figure for redeveloping Clare into a secondary school is £7-9million", this is nowhere near the figure of £18m quoted in letters sent to parents from the Haverhill schools.

Clare is a community in its own right and not part of Haverhill, and closing the school at Clare will take the heart out of our community, resulting in job losses and taking away our freedom of choice of where we want our children to be educated. It will also have an environmental impact by increasing the number of buses taking children to and from school. Making Clare into a secondary school would enable our community to thrive without affecting the community of Haverhill.

Concerned parents
R & S Brown
A & C Boddington
D & S Allen
B & S Eden-Shulver
Highfield and Westfield, Clare, and Cavendish

Filling out your Suffolk Organisation Review Questionnaire

CONFUSED?
NOT SURE HOW TO FILL IN THE SOR QUESTIONNAIRE - DON'T WORRY, YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE - HELP IS AT HAND!

Click the following link to download the C.L.A.R.E fact sheet which will guide you through the questions. We are aware that many of the questions are irrelevant unless you live in Haverhill but the fact sheet will explain which ones to answer and which ones to skip.

It is vital that you complete your questionnaire and send it back. If you have any problems downloading the fact sheet or need more help then please contact us and we will be more than happy to help you fill it in.

http://groups.google.co.uk/group/ruralclare/files

Clare Middle School responds to SOR options

Headteacher Nigel Evans and the governing body of Clare Middle School have sent a letter home to the parents of children attending the school explaining the three options proposed by the Suffolk County Council and why option 3, a secondary school in Clare is viable.

It reads that The Governing Body believes that Option 3 would best meet the needs of children and young people in our largely rural community for the following reasons:

• Our rural community has a different character to the urban centres of Haverhill and Sudbury.


• The Clare Middle School site would be retained for educational purposes and not be simply ‘disposed of’.


• Clare Middle School has been recognised in its recent OFSTED inspection as being good with outstanding features. A Clare High School or Community College would be in the best position to further develop and extend this high standard.


• The site was built as a secondary school in 1955, changing to a 9-13 middle school in the early 1970s, so a change back should not be overwhelmingly difficult.
  The middle school has technology college status, so again is in an advantageous position to meet the needs of the 11-16 age range.


• There is room for expansion of the buildings, while retaining existing playing fields, on what is a magnificent site.


• Former Clare Middle School pupils at Samuel Ward do exceptionally well when they take GCSEs, with 87% achieving A* to C grades in 2006, far exceeding national, county, Castle Manor, Sudbury Upper and Samuel Ward’s own averages. A Clare High School would be in a position to be a real asset to the community and its young people with such results.


• The local rural community would be more economically sustainable with a Clare High School providing jobs and reasons to be in Clare. It would therefore be good for the local economy and for business. A Clare High School would be a centre for regeneration and the future well-being of our rural area.


• Clare Middle School is used by a wide range of organisations out of school hours. A high school in Clare would be in a position to continue opening these facilities to the rural population for community use. The other options could not allow this.


• Members of the community have chosen to move here because of the quality of educational provision in the rural area. A lack of a high school in Clare could lead to this trend being reversed.


• Other rural high schools in Suffolk and in counties such as Cambridgeshire have excellent results. Some of these are relatively small schools which attain high standards in personal, community environment. Current research and thinking supports this approach.


• Substantial sums of money have been invested in Clare Middle School in recent years, particularly since gaining technology college status. This can be witnessed in quality of the refurbished science laboratories, the food technology room, the music room and its practice rooms, the new performance lighting in the hall, and the two ICT suites, amongst others. Options 1 and 2 would lead to a huge waste of this investment.


• The good working partnerships between Clare Middle School and the six feeder primary schools would not be lost, but have the opportunity to strengthen and thrive.


• A high school in Clare, that is, the three secondary schools option, gives more parental choice and diversity of provision, than either of the other options.


• A high school in Clare could be an attractive option for parents who might otherwise seek provision outside of Suffolk or, indeed, the state education system.
  

The letter goes on to say that the board 'believes the consultation document has not entirely represented the relative strengths and weaknesses of the three options'.

In fact it barely mentions any of the above advantages but focuses rather on the cost of implementing option 3 which incidentally is not as high as some might like you to think! The figure of £18m recently banded about was described by Frank Stockley, senior education officer, as 'a little wide of the mark as the cost would be closer to £7m'. Only £11m out! Suffolk County Council are unable to say how much option 1 and 2 would cost - how convenient!

You can download the Clare middle school letter in full by clicking on the following link: http://groups.google.co.uk/group/ruralclare/files

News coverage on mass!

Read what this weeks papers have to say following the C.L.A.R.E public meeting.

Haverhill Echo - School axe - will 'rip out heart of community'
http://www.haverhillecho.co.uk/news/School-axe-would-39rip-heart.3510382.jp

Suffolk Free Press - Clare school is 'vital' to future health of town
http://www.suffolkfreepress.co.uk/news/Clare--school-is-39vital39.3507549.jp

Suffolk Free Press - Middle school campaigners slam headteachers
http://www.suffolkfreepress.co.uk/news/Middle-school-campaigners-slam-headteachers.3510936.jp

East Anglian Daily Times - School conversion 'would cost 7m'
http://www.eadt.co.uk/search/story.aspx?brand=EADOnline&category=News&itemid=IPED20%20Nov%202007%2020:32:34:417&tBrand=EADOnline&tCategory=search

Have you signed the C.L.A.R.E petition?!

If you agree with the following statement and you have not already signed our petition then please do so as soon as possible.

The statement reads:-

'We, the undersigned, are aware of the options proposed by the Suffolk County Council for
the school organisation review and I believe that option three, a rural secondary school,
is the best choice for Clare and the surrounding area'.

You can find copies of our petition at either Butchers Newsagents, Smiths Chemist, the Clare Pet Shop or Humphrys Butchers in Clare. Clare Library and the Parish Council also have copies for signature.

Many thanks
C.L.A.R.E

C.L.A.R.E Public Meeting on 14th November 2007

The C.L.A.R.E public meeting which was held at the Baptist Church this week was a huge success and proved just how well supported our campaign is. Over 100 members of the public including parents, teachers, governors, local business's and residents came to hear how the education system is changing and how it will affect our town. C.L.A.R.E presented the facts and figures and explained why Option 3, a secondary school in Clare, is the best option for our children and the community.

Also in attendance were Joy Stoddard, Frank Stockley and David Groves of the Suffolk School Review Panel with whom the audience had the opportunity to ask questions and view their concerns - and they certainly did! It is obvious from the comments and observations made that the peaple of Clare do not want to lose their school.

Our aim was to make people aware of the seriousness of losing our school not just to parents but to the whole community who will all feel the impact of such a loss. Since the meeting, we have had many words of encouragement and offers of help and will continue to fight our cause knowing that we really do now have the support of the town.

Thank you for joining us.
Keep it Rural!

Statement of support from Tim Yeo, MP

"I would like everyone here this evening to know that the idea of a new secondary school in Clare has my full support. I believe this would best serve the interests of the town and the surrounding villages and is clearly preferable to bussing eleven year old boys and girls to schools in Haverhill.
"I am delighted that Suffolk County Council has accepted, in Option Three, that a new secondary school in Clare is a real possibility. Our task now is to make this their preferred option. They clearly recognise the considerable merits of this proposal or they would not have seen fit to suggest it at all.
"As someone who believes that maximum local choice in education is one of the best ways of improving our education system i am instinctively in favour of the three schools option. And if the local community get behind the idea they have my full backing. " TIM YEO MP

Schools face downsizing revolution - The Observer

A report by the Observer this week highlights the problems faced by schools with such large numbers of pupils. It reads:-

Sprawling comprehensives with more than 1,500 pupils could be replaced with a series of smaller schools in an attempt to improve examination results. Andrew Adonis, the Schools Minister, said that in the United States cities such as New York had transformed test results, behaviour and attendance by cutting down the size of schools.

'I am keen to look, with an open mind, at all proposals to raise standards in schools,' he added. 'Small schools have been successful in the US and they may have a part to play here in the future, if credible proposals are forthcoming.'

The move comes as a new report, to be published on Wednesday, calls for an end to super-size comprehensives, arguing that they leave pupils overwhelmed and lost in a 'sea of anonymity'.

Full story at http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2208999,00.html

Petitioning in Clare!

Wow what a day!

After a morning spent campaigning in the town it was amazing to see how much support we have and how strongly you all feel about keeping education in Clare. We received more than 200 signatures in one morning from local residents, many of which, may not have children of school age but still understand how important the school is to our town. It really was great talking to you all and feeling such a strong sense of community. Thank you so much to everyone for your wonderful comments and to Colin and the team at Tuckerman's for the much needed hot coffee!

Don't worry if you haven't signed our petition yet. We will be back in town over the next few weeks and will be taking it along to all the public meetings. We will also be sending it round to the local schools and leaving copies in some of the shops in town, so please make sure you sign your support. Together we can make a difference!

Tim Yeo on the plans to end middle schools

Read what Conservative MP for South Suffolk, Mr Tim Yeo has to say about the proposed changes to the school system in Suffolk

http://www.timyeo.org.uk/record.jsp?type=article&ID=29