Showing posts with label Michael Free School. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michael Free School. Show all posts

Friday 2 May 2014

Michaela Free School asbestos fears demand answers from Birbalsingh and Gove

The scene at Arena House earlier today
Brent Teachers' Panel has written to Katharine Birbalsingh, headteacher designate of Michaela Academy Free School and Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, seeking information on the asbestos removal programme at Arena House, the ex-College of North West London's Wembley Park building, which was built at a time when asbestos was widely used.

Their concern has been heightened by the fact that Michaela's website says that the contractor Willmott Dixon is working to tight timelines:
Willmott Dixon is our appointed contractor and a lot of work has been going on behind the scenes such as site surveys, detailing of designs and securing planning permission. With all of this now in place, the team is currently preparing to start work on site in just a few weeks’ time.Our contractors have a great deal of experience in preparing free schools to open (often on shorter timelines than ours) [My emphasis] and the Education Funding Agency is involved every step of the way to ensure that everything required will be in place for us to welcome our first intake in September.
Over the next few months in the lead-up to the opening of the school, Willmott Dixon will be stripping out the existing building[My emphasis] creating new spaces that meet our specific requirements and installing new IT systems and furniture in preparation for our new school. The work on site will then be the end product of months of planning and we will keep you updated as Arena House undergoes its exciting transformation.
The Teachers' Panel's concern was heightened when they discovered that Willmott Dixon was one of three firms, along with Marks and Spencer, fined for unsafe removal of asbestos during refurbishment works at the M&S store in Reading: LINK
The principal contractor at the Bournemouth store, Wilmott Dixon, failed to plan, manage and monitor removal of asbestos-containing materials.

It did not prevent the possibility of asbestos being disturbed by its workers in areas that had not been surveyed extensively.
 The court heard that the client, Marks and Spencer plc, did not allocate sufficient time and space for the removal of asbestos-containing materials at the Reading store.
There was a considerable amount of debris evident  in the stripped Arena House classrooms today
 The Brent Teachers' Panel letter reads:
Dear Ms Birbalsingh and Mr Michael Gove,

I am writing on behalf of Brent Teachers’ Panel, representing teacher unions in all types of Brent schools (community, grant maintained, independent, academy and free schools) to request information regarding the management and/or removal of asbestos at the site which is being refurbished for use as Michaela Academy Free School.

Our reason for requesting this information relates to my rights as appointed safety rep and elected health and safety adviser for the NUT representing some 1700 member teachers in Brent, some of whom may work at this school. As you will know, under the Safety Reps and Safety Committee Regulations 1977, an appointed safety rep has the right to see documentation and reports associated with works in a building which may affect the safety of his or her members. In addition to this, and as Brent teachers, we are also genuinely concerned for the safety of children and others in our community.

Please could you therefore provide me with the following:

·        A copy or sight of the asbestos refurbishment/demolition (Type 3) survey carried out for Arena House with associated material and priority risk assessments
·        A local asbestos management plan for the school which will be used when it opens in Arena House in September
·        An explanation as to the choice/selection/tendering process of the contractor Willmott Dixon, bearing in mind that they were found guilty in court of contravening sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 between 5 February 2007 and 28 February 2007, and bearing in mind also that when they took this to appeal on the grounds of small risk to health, the appeal was lost in May 2012.

I would like to assure you of our best intentions and that we only have our members’ and pupils’ safety and wellbeing in mind with this request. The Brent Teachers’ Panel has had to deal with the death of a school pupil and enforcement notices for poor asbestos management in the past, in Brent schools, so we always have safety foremost in our minds.

I look forward to hearing from you on this matter.
Jenny Cooper,
Brent NUT Health & Safety Adviser,
Health & Safety Adviser to Brent Teachers’ Panel
Elected London Representative on the National NUT Health & Safety Working Group
Brent Appointed School Health & Safety Representative
Although free schools are independent of the council, Brent Council does have overall responsibility for the health and well-being of Brent pupils and so should intervene to make sure that this will be a safe environment for pupils and staff.

Saturday 26 October 2013

Would you choose a school recommended by this man?


The message from Michael Gove above appears on the website of the Kings Science Academy, captured by me today in case it disappears.

The Independent today carries a story that Michael Gove has been accused of covering up allegations of £80,000's worth of financial irregularities at the school.

Michael Gove is a great fan of Katharine Birbalsingh who is presently touting for custom for her Michaela Academy Free School which is due to open in an old College of North West London buiilding next to the railway line at Wembley Park next year.

Rumour has it that she is having difficulty in recruiting pupils.

Sunday 21 April 2013

Barry Gardiner says no demand for Michaela Free School and urges residents to make their views known

In a letter to a constituent, Barry Gardiner MP (Labour, Brent North) has said that he has seen no desire in Brent for the Michaela Free School which is run by Katharine Birbalsingh:
Although there is a shortage of school places in Brent, I do not think that a free school In Wembley is the best solution to this problem, especially as there has not been, to my knowledge, a call from the community to open such a school.
He goes on to urge residents to make their views known on the issue before tomorrow's deadline:
The school has not yet been approved by the DfE and as the consultation period is still open, I would urge you and other concerned residents to complete the online questionnaire so that the views of local people are taken into account. The deadline for submissions is on Monday 22nd April 2013 and the questionnaire can be found here: http://www.mcsbrent.co.uk/questionnaire/ .
Be aware that the questionnaire contains some seemingly fairly innocuous statements which few would disgree with but where agreement can be used to claim that the school is supported.

Lord Nash, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools, had written to Gardiner on behalf of Michael Gove and claims that Michaela have had 'production meetings' with Brent Council officials:  
The proposers of Michael Community School are committed to opening a school with a distinct ethos and high expectations that will serve disadvantaged communities in London. The Department considered that their application to open a Free School was strong   and we have been working with them seince September 20122 to develop their school. As Free School projects develop, there are often aspects of the original application that evolve and change. Ministers will consider the final location, evidence of demand and revised plans for the school before making the final decision to open the school.

The Michael Community School is proposing to open in Brent for September 2014. Following an extebnsive site search, the Education Funding Agnecy has been helping the proiposers identify as site which ahs the ca[acity for their proposed school and can serve disadvantaged communities. We believe it is likely that the school will help meet rising demand for places across Brent. The Secretary of State will also consider any evidence that the school proposers provide that the school will improve choice for parents alongside any evidence of basic need for places before deciding whether to enter a funding agreement.

Brent Council has been aware that the Michaela Community School was looking at potentially opening in Brent since last summer. I understand that representatives of the school have had productive meetings with council officials. The Department will write to Brent Council during the school proposers' consultation to seek their further views on the school before a final decision on whether to open the school is made. (My emphasis)

The Secretary of State will ot make the final decision on whether to pen the Michael Community School until the school is ready to enter into a funding agreement. By that point, the school's proposers will have completed a public consultation on the opening of the school. The Secretary of State will also consider the evidence of demand for the school and the potential impact on other nearby state-funded schools.

Finally, we are fully committed to making the Free School programme transparent and accountable. The Department will publish the final pre-opening development cost of each project shortly after the school opens. The Department will also publish the final capital cost of each school once it has been established, which can be after the opening date as sometimes work continues after a school has opened.
Clearly it is important that we know what Brent Council has said during the consultation. The fact that only 8 people in total turned up to the consultation meetings and most, if not all, were opposed to Michaela should have given Brent Council the message that the school is not wanted her.

It is telling that we cannot know the cost, which might well contribute to our views on the project until after the school has opened.