Fresh move to close Shrewsbury’s Wakeman School

Wednesday 31st August 2011, 3:50PM BST.

SHROPSHIRE EDUCATION chiefs today made a fresh recommendation for a county secondary school to close, despite it celebrating record-breaking GCSE results.

The Wakeman School in Shrewsbury will shut its doors for the last time in August 2013 if the recommendation is approved by Shropshire councillors meeting next week.

David Taylor, director of people’s services at the council, is asking the authority’s cabinet to agree to close the school following a lengthy consultation process.

Mr Taylor today said the school was unsustainable and claimed its falling pupil numbers in the past decade could see it produce a deficit of as much as £640,000 in the next academic year.

He said it was irrelevant the school had celebrated its best ever GCSE results as the reason for its closure had never been about academic performance.

Mr Taylor said: “The reasons for the closure of the Wakeman is sustainability. We believe the Wakeman is not a sustainable school.”

Karen Moore, headteacher at the school, said the recommendation disregarded the views of 8,000 people who signed a petition against the plans.

She said: “I find it unbelievable that the local authority can still feel that this is a sensible decision. It is complacent in the extreme for the authority to feel it can afford to close an Ofsted judged good school.”

The six-week statutory consultation period of representations follows consultation which has taken place on an unprecedented scale to look at the future of education in the county.

The cabinet meeting at which the final decision will be taken is being held next Wednesday.

It is the second time the school has faced closure after education bosses were forced to launch a new period of consultation after admitting a blunder.

Councillor Aggie Caesar-Homden, cabinet member for schools, said: “We understand that this is a challenging time for pupils, parents, staff and wider school community affected by the proposals.

“We, as a cabinet, have another very difficult decision to make.

“However, we have not arrived at this stage without careful consideration of all the issues and options,” she added.

By Russell Roberts

View more: Shrewsbury news, Wakeman School news.

1
ANDREW FINCH

August 31, 2011 at 13:20

Seem to be pushing it through , smaller quality schools whether they do well or not seem to be taboo.

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2
John Duffy

August 31, 2011 at 19:55

I see the County Council hasn’t improved much since I departed Shrewsbury in 1983 – what a ridiculous situation and decision, short termism and ill thought out. Though seeing the same tired, weary Councillors that used to inhabit the circuit when I resided in the town still crowing on about their political beliefs (left and right) plus a self serving inward looking Town Centre residents association, is it any wonder Shrewsbury doesnt achieve what its potential is. A shame, a terrific town with fantastic people let down by those charged to care for it. Frankly a disgrace, and an indictment of the narrow minded “political and social elite” that have always held the town and its people back.

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3
greg

September 1, 2011 at 12:58

The Wakeman should apply for Academy status this council keeps changing the goalposts when it comes to their so called consultation, there has never been a clearer predetermined process, the wakeman must not give up and show the education dept they are wrong.

Mr Taylor sent out letters to parents from Barrow school giving us the good news that they have now changed the catchment areas and Barrow and Broseley are now in the same catchment area, during our metting with them they told us this was a difficult process to achieve, but now they have closed our school it suddenly became an easy process.

Keep fighting Wakeman!!

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4
Rebecca Robinson

September 1, 2011 at 13:00

I’ll have you know, as a pupil of the Wakeman school I feel you have done nothing but down trodden any glimpse of our fight with constant published articles of which you all most confirm our school to be closing and I feel that without being bias I am sure you could have supported our cause. Never the less it seems once again (Although, I am not surprised) that you have failed to support our community.

I’m also very well aware that this little paragraph of mine has only been written in vain as you are all far to high on your pedestal to read my comment.

Ps. I can only presume you attended schools the like of Belvidere & Meole Brace

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5
jason bildwitch

September 1, 2011 at 18:16

Vive la Wakeman!

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6
Helen Fletcher

September 2, 2011 at 11:56

“[David Taylor] said it was irrelevant the school had celebrated its best ever GCSE results as the reason for its closure had never been about academic performance.”

The trouble is, government guidelines are very clear that the closure of a school as part of reorganisation of education like this one must improve standards of provision. Whatever David Taylor says, academic performance is fundamental to the proposal- he can’t just decide that the guidance doesn’t apply to Shropshire and pick off a school he doesn’t like very much. The Wakeman’s GCSE results count, as does its recent ‘Good’ Ofsted report. This proposal would never stand up to appeal and if Shropshire Council votes to close The Wakeman, that is exactly what it will get.

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