How heads can resist forced academies

It was clear listening yesterday to the parents from Snaresbrook Primary School, who successfully fought against forced academisation, that they were greatly aided by the fact that the senior leadership team, governing body, and local authority all opposed to forced academisation and supported their campaign. In this video Rob Kelsall of the National Association of Head Teachers addresses what head teachers and governing bodies can do. So far in Brent there have been at least two forced primary academies and unfortunately the local authority has not been forthright in its opposition or in its support for parent campaigners.

The Big Garden Birdwatch in Wembley

My back garden

The RSPB's  annual 'Big Garden Birdwatch' is always an opportunity to sit in a comfortable armchair, cup of coffee at hand, to do almost nothing for an hour.

I have a tiny garden but it is designed to be nature friendly and is regularly visited by birds, However, the annual observation period is subject to interference from some unwelcome visitors. A pair of pigeons will perch on the seed feeder bracket for hours. They are unable to reach the feeders themselves but their bulky presence puts off smaller birds. They peer dimly at the  blue tits who bravely flit back and forth to the feeders but don't seem to have worked out that this is not time well spent!

They are the bird equivalent of dog in a manger.

There is also a neighbour's black cat that positions itself below the feeder and mews plaintively at the clinging birds, apparently in an effort to persuade them to plummet into its open mouth.

This morning the pigeons kept away and it was too wet for the cat, but a pair of raucous magpies made up for them and kept scaring off the other birds.

Nevertheless these were my results for the period between 10 and 11am:

Blue tit (5)
Great tit (4)
Nuthatch (2)
Dunnock (2)
Magpie (2)
Great spotted woodpecker (1)
Robin (1)
Blackcap (1)
Wood pigeon (1)
Jay (1)
Blackbird (1)

Each bird is counted only once  so when there is more than one they have to be in the garden at the same time - not the total seen over the hour as many of these will be returnees. Long tailed tits, a frequent visitor in groups of six or more, are missing. They usually visit mid-afternoon. I also see chaffinches and goldfinches but have not seen green finches for a couple of years after they were hit by disease.

The pair of nuthatches are regular visitors. They frighten off the blue tits and great its before feeding. This footage taken from my window shows a nuthatch's beauty and versaitility:

4,000 petitioners demand that the Queensbury Pub be saved for the community

Busy Rascals Mums and toddlers wait to present the petition

Local residents, especially parents from the Busy Rascals group, came along in strength this week, to present a 4,000 plus petition to Cllr Michael Pavey to save the Queensbury Pub from developers. Pavey is Brent Executive member for children and families so may seem a strange choice, but that is because the Queensbury is no ordinary pub - it is now recognised as an 'asset of community value' not just as an exellent pub but as the base for Busy Rascals, a parent and toddler group and National Childbirth Trust meetings.

Pavey received the petition, not in his official role, but as a councillor committed to the interests of children. Independent Make Willesden Green Candidate, Alex Colas (on the left of Michael Pavey) was there to show his support, as was I for the Greens and there were several prospective Labour Party councillors present, but the real message was that this was a non-politically aligned community campaign that intends to fight on for the common good.

Willesden Green has lost too much in the last year or so and cannot afford to lose any more community assets. The Queensbury campaign deserves all our support.

Brent's 2015-16 budget gap could still justify council tax referendum

Reflecting on Muhammed Butt's declaration yesterday that there were 'no plans to change course' on freezing council tax for the 2014-15 budget, I wonder what his plans are for 2015-16. In October the Council forecast a deficit for that year of  £34m (see below) a huge amount that on the council's own reckoning will put essential services at risk.

As political parties are deciding their manifestos for the May local elections surely they should be saying something about this crisis waiting for them in their first year of office.

In that respect a manifesto pledge to have a referendum on increasing council tax would make sense. Rank and file Labour party members and the wider public could than have a say and it could provide a launch pad for similar moves by other local authorities.  I do not think increases in council tax are the answer to the huge cuts in local authority funding, that of course requires the restoration of adequate funding, but a national debate post May 2014 leading up to the General Election in 2015 could feed into that demand. It will certainly put the future of local government on the General Election agenda.

The referendum debate in Brent, unlike in Brighton and Hove, may be closed in terms of the 2014-15 budget but should be very much a live issue for 2015-16. The electorate need to know how the competing parties would tackle the issue.

Meanwhile on February 4th the Budget Finance and Overview Scrutiny Committee will be discussing the draft budget for 2014-15. No details are included on the agenda except for the following statement:

The Budget and Finance Overview and Scrutiny Committee will discuss and make recommendations on the draft 2014/15 budget. Councillor Ruth Moher, Lead Member for Corporate Resources and Deputy Leader of the Council, will present the draft budget and answer questions from members. While the committee will lead the discussion, this meeting is intended to give all non-Executive members the opportunity to participate in the budget scrutiny process and raise any questions or comments they may have on the draft budget.

These are the figures published on Wembley Matters in October 2013 LINK that signalled the upcoming crisis:
 

	2014/15	2015/16	2016/17
	£m	£m	£m
Budget Gap at Council Feb 2013	20.4	17.1	17.3
Reductions in Revenue Support Grant	2.0	13.0	1.0
Business Rate Top-Up	-0.1	-0.4	-0.2
Additional Council Tax Freeze Grants	-1.0	-1.1	2.1
Business Rates - share of growth from baseline	-1.9	-0.7	-0.6
New Homes Bonus	0.5	2.7	-0.1
Collection Fund Surplus	-2.4	2.4
Council Tax Base	-1.3	-0.2	-0.3
Other Grants	-1.1	0.8
Capital Financing	-2.0
Latest Budget Gap	13.1	33.6	19.2

Now Brent Council leader says Council Tax freeze to stay

Brent Labour's democratic revolution seems to have died a quick death. Earlier this week Labour leader Muhammed Butt stated at the Willesden Connects Forum that there was a vigorous debate going amongst the Labour Group about the possibility of holding a referendum about raising Council Tax.

The 100 flowers that Chairman Butt appeared to be allowing to blossom have been struck by a sudden frost, perhaps emanating from on high. An hour ago he tweeted:

Cllr. Muhammed Butt ‏@CllrButt 1h

Brent will freeze Council Tax for 5th yr in row from April & no plans to change course. We must do everything possible to ease #CostOfLiving

This is a pity because it did seem to be a bit of a breakthrough in terms of having a rational and broad debate about the important issue of preserving services in the face of savage cuts. Some of his colleagues will  be disappointed. The posting about it on Wembley Matters has been widely viewed and shared and it clearly created interest beyond Brent.

 I wonder if Muhammed Butt's announcement was arrived at democratically?

KILBURN ANTI-FASCIST MOBILISATION IS OFF

The anti-fascist mobilisation in Kilburn Park tomorrow is OFF, following confirmation that the report that Hungarian extreme right-wing party Jobbik was to meet there was a wind-up.

However the main UAF demonstration against Jobbik on Sunday  is ON. Assemble opposite Holborn Station at 12.30pm

Towards a National Campaign for Education

This week's Education Question Time in Hammersmith which was organised by the Anti Academies Alliance and the group Towards a National Campaign for Education, arose out of a desire to bring together the various campaigner groups under one umbrella. Sharing experiences and strategies and building an alternative model for the organisation and content of education area clearly a formidable task but this meeting, attended by more than 400 people, made a start.

The need for such a campaign was made even more urgent by the news that Hammersmith and Fulham Council had voted to close the high achieving and popular local Sulivan Primary School in order to sells its site to a Fulham Boys' Free School. LINK

There will be a similar meeting in Brixton, South London on February 27th:

A chance to debate and ask questions about the key debates in education

Chaired by broadcaster and journalist Fiona Phillips.

The panel includes:
Professor Gus John, Institue of Education Jenny Landreth, Writer and local parent David Wolfe, Barrister, Matrix Chambers Lib Peck, Leader of Lambeth Council Jess Edwards, Teacher and coordinator of Charter for Primary Education

Register for tickets here: http://educationquestiontime.ticketsource.co.uk/
To ask questions in advance email us: TowardsNCE2014@virginmedia.com  or Direct message @nce2014 with hashtag #edqtime

SouthLondon_QT_27Feb14_A5 (1).pdf

Brent Labour debating Referendum on raising Council Tax

Brent Council leader Muhammed Butt last night told the audience at Willesden Connects that a vigorous debate was going on in the Labour group about the possibility of Brent Council staging a referendum on raising Council Tax.

This follows the decision of the Green Brighton and Hove Council to seek such a referendum in order to raise Council Tax to protect Adult Social Services. When I tweeted this story Cllr James Denselow, Brent Executive member tweeted back that he was 'very interested to see how this goes'.

Unfortunately the Labour Party in Brighton and Hove have opposed the Referendum LINK and are to move a vote of no confidence in the minority Green administration.

Brent Labour's discussion reflects the large cuts expected in 2015-16 and London Councils' warning LINK that 'without significant changes to the way cuts are applied many boroughs will quickly reach an unsustainable position, and that will affect local services'.

Brent finance officers have warned for some time that continuing the Council Tax freeze risks seriously undermining the council's revenue base.

Muhammed Butt himself said at Willesden Connects that a rise in Council Tax would affect the poorest people who are now expected to pay 20% of the tax. This ironically was the basis of the demonstration at Full Council on Monday when the protesters wanted that group protected - something that has happened in other boroughs and where Brent's poorest pay the second highest rate in London.

Interestingly in Brighton the GMB union has welcomed the Green move. Mark Turner the city;s GMB organiser said:

This new budget would protect frontline services in adult social care. Cuts would have absolutely terrible consequences on people’s lives. It is only right that the public have a chance to vote on this proposal.

In the Local Government Chronicle, LINK after doubting whether the referendum move would get past the combined Labour and Conservative vote(32 against the Green's 21)  Emma Maier nevertheless wrote:

A referendum in Brighton would truly be democracy in action. Whatever the outcome, this is a historic case. The local and national news stories will go some way to disabusing people of the common perception that council services are funded entirely from council tax, and will ensure that more people are aware of cuts to central funding.

If a referendum were to be held a 'no' vote would probably finish off Britain's first Green administration. But it could also open up a conversation about publicly sanctioned services cuts – and a debate about the role of local government in future.

A 'yes' vote, meanwhile, could change the whole dynamic between central and local government, and between voters and the council. The implication would ripple much further than Brighton's beaches.

The latter scenario is unlikely. But if it can happen anywhere, it would be Brighton.

In a letter to the Guardian today Baroness Ruth Lister of the Labour Party, Chair of Compass Neil Lawson and John Hilary write:

The decision of Brighton council to hold a referendum on whether to increase council tax to pay for essential services is a bold commitment to democracy and equality. Everyone is feeling squeezed as a result of the Tories' draconian cuts to local government and public services, but a political contest over which party will manage austerity more effectively won't change the terms of debate. Money raised collectively, spent collectively and targeted where there is the most need is as essential in Brighton as it is across the UK.

Of course the referendum is not the answer in the long-term, and still makes the poor pay for the crisis, but  it does open up a debate about the adequate financing of local government service.  We have to focus on the disastrous impact of funding cuts on the vulnerable, and the possible deaths that may result.  That is why some are referring to the Brighton referendum as the Social Care referendum, rather than the Council Tax Referendum - this puts the emphasis on the provision of vital services rather than taxes.

This weekend Young Greens are descending on Brighton in large numbers to campaign for the referendum. See thir article on Left Foot Forward HERE 

Here is another view from columnist Simon Jenkins LINK