Agenda item

With reference to Article 13 of the minute of its meeting of 18 February, 2010, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport which detailed the latest phase of the development of the Learning Estate and outlined options for reducing the number of secondary schools and redefining catchment areas to allow a more efficient delivery of secondary school education.

The report detailed the history of the work undertaken to improve the Learning Estate thus far, and the 25 stakeholder engagement events which had been held to develop the potential options for improvement.  The priorities and principles for the Learning Estate had been approved by Committee at its meeting in February, 2010.

The report advised that there were three main influences which impacted on planning the delivery of the service, namely sufficiency, suitability and condition.  A revised strategy on the evaluation of school capacities had previously been approved by Committee and the report stated that it was essential that the Council provided the right size of schools in the right places.  It was also noted that some of the current schools were not suitable for the delivery of a modern curriculum and were of inferior quality to schools completed as part of the 3Rs Project.  Finally, the report advised that there were aspects of all schools, other than in those which were part of the 3Rs Project, which were in an unsatisfactory condition.

The report outlined that there was a commitment to bring all places of learning, including schools, up to a standard which was equivalent to, or better than, those which were built as part of the 3Rs Project.  While it was acknowledged that this would be challenging, particularly in the current financial climate, it was noted that decisions would be taken based on sound educational rationale, value for money and to meet the aspiration of communities.

The report highlighted that there were currently 16,008 primary school places and 10,896 secondary places in Aberdeen, however, the current primary roll of 11,819 and secondary roll of 9,208 reflected a 74% and 85% occupancy rate respectively.  These figures did not, however, reflect the fact that some schools were over-subscribed while others were under occupied.  It was predicted that the level of overprovision in secondary schools would continue to rise until 2018.  Therefore, the report recommended that an eight academy model should be investigated, which would allow for 800 to 1,200 pupils in each secondary school.  It was however noted that this size of school was not appropriate in every case, and the option proposed took this into consideration.  For example, the report advised that due to the provision at Bucksburn Academy for pupils with Additional Support Needs, it was felt that a smaller secondary school would provide a more supportive environment for pupils.  It was also noted that the location and footprint of certain schools would not easily allow expansion to accommodate 1,200 pupils.

It was advised that work was ongoing to develop co-operative arrangements between schools and the report noted that additional subject and course choice could be provided through the use of technology, particularly virtual learning.  It was noted that where existing consortium arrangements between schools were in place, these could be enhanced, however the report also advised that certain combinations of schools could not be considered for consortium working due to the geographical layout of Aberdeen.

Appended to the report were various maps illustrating the potential options for improving the learning estate, and the gross book value which provided an indication of the level of potential income which disposal of the identified sites might generate.

The report also outlined the planned consultation process for the development of the Learning Estate Strategy, and noted that the period of consultation with stakeholders would run from 31 May to 26 August, 2010.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       instruct officers to engage widely on the proposal to move as soon as is practicable to, in the first instance, an eight secondary school model as described in Section 6.3.2 and report back to Committee in September, 2010, on the outcome of the stakeholder engagement.  Recommendations to move to statutory consultation on specific schools and zones would be included in that report;

(b)       instruct officers to prepare detailed plans to provide accommodation for additional pupils generated by proposed new housing developments under the Structure Plan;

(c)        instruct officers to prepare a proposed schedule of improvements to the learning estate which will bring all establishments up to a standard at least equivalent to schools being completed under the 3Rs Project;  and

(d)       instruct officers to undertake a further rezoning exercise of primary schools, to take account of any decisions taken by Committee on the secondary school estate.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to approve the recommendations contained in the report, subject to an amended recommendation (a), namely:-

                        “That Committee instruct officers to engage widely, as soon as is practicable, on all four secondary school models and report back to a special single issue meeting of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee in September, 2010, on the outcome of the stakeholder engagement.”;

(ii)        to request that officers expand the detail included for each option for the consultation with stakeholders;

(iii)       to request that officers include information on the number of out-of-zone pupils in secondary schools;

(iv)       to request that officers ensure that pupils, parents and Elected Members of Aberdeenshire Council are included in the consultation;  and

(v)        to request that officers extend the consultation events to include more Parent Council meetings, ASG events and Community Council meetings.