The Future of Secondary Education in Nuneaton and Bedworth
The Future of Secondary Education in Nuneaton and Bedworth will be the subject of a special meeting of the County Council’s Nuneaton and Bedworth Area Committee next Wednesday, 25th June.
The meeting will be held at Eliot Park Innovation Centre, Barling Way, Eliot Park, starting at 6pm. The committee is being asked to formulate its local views on the proposals for consideration by the County Council’s Cabinet in July.
Members of the public are invited to listen to the discussion or participate in the debate. If you wish to take part in the meeting and make your views known to the committee, please contact: Peter Hunter, Nuneaton and Bedworth Area Manager, Warwickshire County Council, on 024 7637 5700, e mail peterhunter@warwickshire.gov.uk
The proposals consider the future of all secondary schools in the Nuneaton and Bedworth Area and is prompted by:
Low levels of attainment in some schools in Nuneaton and Bedworth and a widening gap between levels of attainment in the area and the rest of Warwickshire.
The poor state of secondary school buildings in the area Surplus places in secondary schools locally. The opportunity presented by Building Schools for the Future and the Academies Programme to secure significant investment in secondary schools. In most instances, the draft proposals involve the redevelopment of schools on their existing site through the Government’s Building Schools for the Future programme.
The proposal for George Eliot School is that an Academy should be established on the existing site to serve the local catchment area and part of the Etone catchment.
Three options for Manor Park and Etone Schools are under consideration. These all involve a proposal to establish a new school on the current site of Manor Park; to serve the Manor Park / Etone shared area, and the Horeston Grange area, which is currently in the Etone priority area (shared priority with Higham Lane.)
Councillor Barry Longden, Chair of the Area Committee said, “The review provides an opportunity to bring major investment into the secondary schools in our area and transform them into schools fit for the 21st century. This is an opportunity that won’t come along often, so we need to get it right for the sake of the young people of the area.
It is important to hear the views of all of the schools affected by the proposals and it is vital to ensure the continuity of high quality education whilst all of these changes are taking place. We also need to minimise the uncertainty that is created by this process. The meeting on 25th June is an opportunity for people with an interest in the issue to listen to the discussion, or make a contribution to the debate.”