Brent Council Executive member backs Gladstone Park parents

Cllr Krupesh Hirani, lead member for Adults and Health, has become the second Dudden Hill councillor to back the Parents Action Group at Gladstone Park Primary.

In a meeting with representatives from the campaign he stated that 'enforced academy is wrong' and 'we think Gladstone Parl doesn't need to become an academy'.

He agreed to write a letter in support of the Save Gladstone Park Primary School campaign for dessmination and he also signed the parents, carers and friends petition.

Parents finally requested that Cllr Hirani ask Cllr Muhammed Butt (leader of Brent Council) to instruct  Christine Gilbert (Brent Chief Executive) or any other relevant Brent officer to write to DfE stating (a) that DfE’s is in breach of Civil service Codes of Conduct and acceptable behaviour in making decisions that impact on the general public and (b) that Brent is confident in GP leadership successfully seeing through improvement action plan in response to Ofsted report, without change in governance status. In this regard, Ofsted Principal Officer Deana Holdaway’s response to Sarah Cox was quoted: ‘The judgement that leadership and management are not inadequate is an important one; it shows that staff have the capacity to continue the school’s improvement’.   

In response Cllr Hirani said there was a distinction between Council and councillors and he would seek advice before making such a request.

Willesden Green Planning application descends into chaos

The Keep Willesden Green campaigners have long argued that there is a possibility of 'pre-determination' over the Galliford Try/Linden Homes planning application for Willesden Green: that the Council had already made up its mind and that the Planning Committee would rubber-stamp the Council's deal with Galliford Try.

Their worse fears seemed to have been realised when Brent Council sent out a message overnight saying that the Planning Committee had yesterday approved the two applications - despite the Council having previously announced that the decision had been deferred to a Special Planning Committee on February 21st for 'technical' reasons'.

A call to Democratic Services early this morning elicited the response that the release of this announcement had been a mistake and that the application hadn't been considered last night. The announcement was quickly removed from the website.

Doesn't look the model of efficiency does it - not to mention the number of heart attacks it might have caused at breakfast time in Willesden Green?

Dudden Hill Labour Councillor supports Gladstone Park Parents' forced academy resistance

Councillor Aslam Choudry (Labour Dudden Hill) has responded to an e-mail from a resident whose grandchildren attend the school with this message:

Let me make my position clear. I have been associated with Gladstone Park School for over 20 years . All of my four children attended Gladstone Primary School and I firmly believe that the school does an excellent service to the local community.

Last Friday, I spoke at the local mosque in Willesden Green before the Jummah Prayers in favour of the demonstration outside the school and, in fact encouraged the congregation to take part.

I am aware that at least 5 parents came to the demonstration .

So, I support your efforts and I believe the Gladstone School is already doing a great deal to improve the education for all children and therefore it should not be forced to go the academy route.

Please let me know if you wish to talk further on this.

Acad£mies and Lies - lessons from the movies

As the struggle of Gladstone Park Primary parents against a forced academy hots up and attention also turns to Kensal Rise Primary, this film shows how a community rose up in defence of its schools. The bullying of the DfE is challenged by parents and school staff. With more attempts at forced academies provoking revolt across London the Guardian, Independent and the Evening Standard (see below) have woken up to what is happening. LINK to coverage in yesterday's Evening Standard.

 As with the closure of Central Middlesex Hospital, Brent Labour councillors have been slow to react. As representatives of local residents who have shown such passionate support for their local school and commitment to the role of the local authority, surely they must state loudly and clearly that they oppose forced academisation and are confident (as Ofsted said - see below) in the capacity of the present leadership and management to improve the school and deal with the weaknesses revealed by the recent inspection.

London Councils act to improve HIV prevention services

Source: Health Protection Agency

 Press release from London Councils

Leaders of London’s councils yesterday agreed to take decisive action together to improve HIV prevention services in the capital.

As they prepare to take on new public health responsibilities from 1 April, London boroughs have recognised that the HIV prevention activity they are inheriting is not meeting the needs of Londoners.  They have today initiated joint work to improve future commissioning of such services.

In the meantime, Leaders have agreed that some of the contracts from the current Pan London HIV Prevention Programme due to terminate on 31 March should be extended subject to more robust programme management – initially for six months and, subject to performance, potentially a further six months to ensure provision continues.  Final details will be resolved in the next few weeks.

London Councils Executive Member for Health, Councillor Teresa O’Neill, said:

A new approach to HIV prevention is needed to make sure that Londoners are educated about HIV before it is too late.  An estimated 50 per cent of Londoners with HIV are diagnosed at a point where their immune system is damaged and treatment is needed.

Frankly, Londoners have not been well served by the approach to HIV prevention in the capital in recent years.  The transfer of responsibilities around HIV prevention to local authorities gives us an opportunity to look at the way services have been provided in the past and change them so they are more effective, better value for money and targeted in the right way.

Nearly half of people with HIV in the UK live in London and more than a third of new diagnoses take place in the capital.  Terrence Higgins Trust, the charity which campaigns on issues around HIV and AIDS, points to an over-use of specialist clinics and an under-developed approach to community-based testing, care and support. Directors of Public Health will lead joint work, involving stakeholders and experts, to develop a robust needs assessment to inform future commissioning of HIV prevention services.  This will also form the basis for decisions on the whether boroughs want to join together to commissioning some of these services on a pan-London basis in future

Planning Committee won't consider Willesden Green development on Wednesday

The Galliford Try planning application for the Wiillesden Green flats and library development has been deferred until February 21st for 'technical reasons'.  Keep Willesden Green campaigners have raised various issues about the legal status of the  application over the last week or so.

The email from Democratic Services to councillors on the Planning Committee is below:

Dear Member,

Due to technical reasons, the planning applications for Willesden Green Library (references 12/2924 and 12/2925) will be deferred from tomorrow night’s meeting.  As the applications will still need to be considered at the earliest possible time following tomorrow’s meeting, the Chair has asked me to confirm your availability on Thursday 21 February 2013 for the special meeting.

If for any reason you will not be able to attend the meeting please consider asking your alternate. I would appreciate it if you could respond to this request at the earliest opportunity preferably before 10:00am tomorrow morning.

Joe Kwateng

Democratic Services Officer

Legal & Procurement Department

( Direct Line: 020 8937 1354
joe.kwateng@brent.gov.uk

This is becoming a real headache for the developers, maybe Galliford Try/Linden Homes will pull out before the 21st?

Ofsted acknowledges Gladstone Park's strengths and confirms its capacity to improve

 Writing to a grandparent of a Gladstone Park Primary school pupil, Deana Holdaway, HMI , Principal Officer for Quality Assurance at Ofsted reiterated the areas where Ofsted found weaknesses in the school but went on:

However the report also gives due credit to the school's  strengths. The judgement that leadership and management are not inadequate is an important one: it shows  that staff have the capacity to continue the school's improvement. (My emphasis)

Clearly this raises a vital question: If Ofsted thinks the present leadership and management has the capacity to 'continue to improve' (ie the process of improvement is under way) then why should the DfE think that the school needs to be forcibly converted into an academy with all the upheaval that involves.

One can only conclude that there is a conflict between Ofsted's professional assessment and the DfE's political agenda.

Evening Standard covers Gladstone Park, Roke and Thomas Gamuel resistance to forced academy status

Parents join forces to fight academy takeovers

Campaign: families protest outside Gladstone Park primary in Brent

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From today's Evening Standard LINK

Parents of pupils at London schools under threat of being forced to become academies are uniting to fight the plans.

A growing number of schools are at risk of compulsory takeover by private sponsors following unsatisfactory Ofsted reports. Parents from three primaries are working together to combat the plans and are due to contact campaigners at a fourth. They say the move is “politically-driven, disproportionate and undemocratic”.

At Gladstone Park primary in Brent, families have accused Education Secretary Michael Gove of setting the “attack dogs” on them and held a protest outside the school this weekend.

The school received an inadequate Ofsted report before Christmas and governors were told a sponsor would be chosen to take over the running of the school within weeks.

Roke primary in Croydon and Thomas Gamuel primary in Walthamstow are also on the “hit list” after inadequate Ofsted reports. Parents at the schools argue the reports are a “blip”
.
Alex Colas, whose daughter goes to Gladstone Park, said: “The Government has set the attack dogs on us. There is a sense we are being picked on. Bullied is a term that was used.” Parents at Gladstone Park dispute the Ofsted report. The school has previously been rated as “good”.

Mr Colas said they were getting advice from protesters at Downhills in Tottenham, who failed to stop the school becoming an academy last year. There are plans to contact Thomas Gamuel school where 180 parents have signed a petition against academy proposals.

A Department for Education spokeswoman said: “We cannot just stand by if a school is failing children. We need to make changes quickly.”

She added that Ofsted’s report and representations from Gladstone Park were being considered before making a decision.