Agenda, decisions and minutes

Cabinet Member for Children and Family Services, and Rural Affairs - Monday, 27th January, 2014 11.30 am

Venue: Committee Suite 1 & 2, Westfields, Middlewich Road, Sandbach CW11 1HZ. View directions

Contact: Cherry Foreman  Democratic Services Officer

Items
No. Item

24.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence.

25.

Declarations of Interest

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any disclosable pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests in any item on the agenda.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

26.

Public Speaking Time/Open Session

In accordance with Procedure Rules Nos.11 and 35 a period of 10 minutes is allocated for members of the public to address the meeting on any matter relating to the work of the body in question.  Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes but the Chairman or person presiding will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned where there are a number of speakers. Members of the public are not required to give notice to use this facility. However, as a matter of courtesy, a period of 24 hours’ notice is encouraged.

 

Members of the public wishing to ask a question at the meeting should provide at least three clear working days’ notice in writing and should include the question with that notice. This will enable an informed answer to be given.

 

 

Minutes:

Ian Norbury, of Dairy Farm, Church Lane (adjacent to the school) spoke in respect of the ongoing difficulties to the flow of traffic, access to his fields at the beginning and end of the school day, and the general adverse effect on his livelihood caused by the traffic and on street parking engendered by parents dropping-off and collecting their children from school.

 

The lack of car parking facilities for parents meant that cars often arrived up to an hour ahead of time.  The speed limit on the road, its bends, and the large number of parked cars meant that driving conditions in that locality were hazardous and could only be made worse by the additional number of school places proposed.  Farm contractors regularly had to either wait or time their work in order to be able to gain access to, or leave, the fields. 

 

He did not believe the existing site was fit for purpose as the size of the site and its infrastructure could not support the number of places needed;  this would only provide a short term solution and an alternative location suitable for the long term was needed. 

 

Alistair Macleod, a Governor of the school, spoke of the efforts made by the school, and of the regular communications with parents, in an attempt to manage the situation.  He undertook to relay back to the Governing Body the comments and discussions of the meeting.

27.

Proposed Expansion of Mobberley CE Primary School, Knutsford pdf icon PDF 72 KB

To consider the commencement of consultation on the proposed expansion of this school.

Additional documents:

Decision:

That approval be granted to commence statutory consultation on the proposed expansion of Mobberley CE Primary School from 140 to 210 pupil places for implementation from September 2014.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Children’s Services on the need to expand the capacity of this school.  As the Strategic Commissioner of School Places, the Local Authority had a statutory duty to review provision within its area and to establish future demand.  Pupil forecasts indicated a shortfall in the number of primary school places in the Knutsford area as a whole and the Local Authority was seeking to address by expanding existing schools. 

 

In making this recommendation, officers had considered a number of issues including the number of pupils in each school’s catchment area, the number of first preferences received for each school, the current size of the school together with its overall size, and the likely costs of extension. In addition suitable schools needed to be central to the areas where the extra places were needed. 

 

In response to points raised by the public speakers it was further explained that the decision now being sought was for approval to go out to statutory consultation in order to assess the feelings of the school, staff and the local community.  The expansion would provide a way speedy way of providing places for the current need whilst then giving time for other long term solutions to be considered.

 

RESOLVED

 

That approval be granted to commence statutory consultation on the proposed expansion of Mobberley CE Primary School from 140 to 210 pupil places for implementation from September 2014.