Bid to create Burnley's first free school unveiled

2:00pm Sunday 16th December 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Lisa Woodhouse, Assistant picture editor

BURNLEY is in line for its first free high school - in a borough which already has hundreds of spare secondary places.

And critics say the 'Christian ethos' scheme will leave the town's schools battling for pupils.

Already there are 747 empty seats in the multi-million pound Building Schools for Future sites.

But the group behind the new plans - including two local headteachers and a university professor - say their school would pioneer a shake-up in the education system.

They say it would focus on sustainability and science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects, and create more choice for parents who currently send their children to schools out of town.

Headteachers Julie Bradley, from St Leonard’s, Padiham, and Dawn Forshaw, from Wellfield CE Primary, Burnley, have joined together with Professor Paul Clarke, The Life Church Burnley, Community Solutions Lancashire and the Chapel Street charity on the proposals for the 650-pupil Burnley High School.

Proposals are currently being drawn up before being submitted to the Department for Education in January, who will decide whether it can go ahead.

Simon Jones, national executive member for the National Union of Teachers, said: “More free schools and academies aren’t wanted or needed. It reduces the ability of the local authority to strategically plan and deprives other schools of much needed resources.”

A number of potential sites have been identified, but none confirmed.

There are currently 2,925 secondary school places across East Lancashire.

That figure is set to rise when the new University Technical College (UTC) opens next year within the Weavers Triangle development. The UTC, which will be managed by Training 2000 and cater for up to 600 14 to 19-year-olds from across East Lancashire.

Critics say some of the ‘superschools’, created under the previous government’s Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme are significantly undersubscribed, fuelling the concern that there will be too many empty seats in classrooms.

David Whyte, head at St Wilfrid’s CE Academy in Blackburn, which takes Christian children from the Burnley area, said more pressure would be put on schools to entice pupils.

He said: “It’s a landscape that’s changing dramatically and we have to accept that these changes are happening.

“If there are more places than students, then there will be more pressure to compete. It’s obvious that more pressure will be put on all schools.

“It’s good news for parents because they will have more choices, and to safeguard the future all schools will have to make sure they are delivering what parents want.”

But the group say they have been encouraged by the number of people expressing an interest.

Jeff Brunton, senior minister at Life Church in Burnley, is one of the people backing the plans.

He said: “We realise that there are surplus places but it’s about offering people choice.

“There are some fantastic schools and resources in Burnley, but people are still choosing to educate their children out of town.

“I’m very conscious that a lot of children are going out of town for high school education, mainly to St Christopher’s CE High School in Accrington and St Wilfrid’s CE Academy in Blackburn. There isn’t a high school with a Christian ethos in Burnley.”

The proposed school plans to extend the ‘pop-up farm’ programme currently run in Burnley primary schools - which encourages children grow their own vegetables, look after livestock, learn about biodiversity, keep bees, and test out energy, water and waste saving ideas.

Professor Paul Clarke, founder of Incredible Edible in Todmorden, was the brain behind the scheme and is on the steering group for Burnley High School.

He said: “No schools in the country focus on sustainability. The education system has stagnated and we aim to challenge the orthodox and do things differently.

“It would trailblaze the way for a new way of thinking. We hope to take it wider if it is successful.

“This isn’t just a case of throwing a few carrots in the ground, it could help further studies into genetics and genomes and other issues that will affect the whole world in the future.

“Whether it is approved or not, it has made people think about the structure of the education system.”

Russell Rook, CEO of Chapel Street, said the charity was approached by the small group who wished to form the Christian ethos high school, which could open as early as September 2014.

He said: “The community feels there is a need for a different type of school. There has been great investment into Burnley schools, but we feel there is an opportunity to do something new and exciting in the town.

“Subjects would be taught in a hands-on way rather than in traditional classroom environment. The high school would also have a ‘primary school feel’ with close working relationships with parents and the community.

“It will not just be good for Burnley, but a pioneering idea in the country.”

Comments (18)

2:10pm Sun 16 Dec 12

Excluded again says...

This school may well succeed in taking pupils with its subliminal strapline of: send your kids here because there won't be any Asians. Its worked pretty well for St Wilfred's in Blackburn.
This school may well succeed in taking pupils with its subliminal strapline of: send your kids here because there won't be any Asians. Its worked pretty well for St Wilfred's in Blackburn. Excluded again

2:20pm Sun 16 Dec 12

davidinburnley says...

Why shouldn't Burnley have a Christian school? The reason the other schools in the area has more less to do with a lack of children in the area who could fill the classes and more to do with parents not wanting to send their kids there - hence sending them to schools out of town.
Why shouldn't Burnley have a Christian school? The reason the other schools in the area has more less to do with a lack of children in the area who could fill the classes and more to do with parents not wanting to send their kids there - hence sending them to schools out of town. davidinburnley

2:27pm Sun 16 Dec 12

Over It says...

This is a time of austerity yet if the go-ahead for this free school is given, government funding will be allocated where there is absolutely no need for a new school. It fits the ideology of the Tory government but not the needs of the community at large.
This is a time of austerity yet if the go-ahead for this free school is given, government funding will be allocated where there is absolutely no need for a new school. It fits the ideology of the Tory government but not the needs of the community at large. Over It

2:37pm Sun 16 Dec 12

sharonAccy says...

Gives the children of accrington a fighting chance of going to their "local" c of e school instead of missing out cause of all the kids from burnley and surrounding areas, especially when we go to church each week
Gives the children of accrington a fighting chance of going to their "local" c of e school instead of missing out cause of all the kids from burnley and surrounding areas, especially when we go to church each week sharonAccy

5:07pm Sun 16 Dec 12

Noiticer says...

What's the betting that in another decade the educational chaos currently being created will have to reined in and brought back into local authority control and after all the money has been wasted?
What's the betting that in another decade the educational chaos currently being created will have to reined in and brought back into local authority control and after all the money has been wasted? Noiticer

5:20pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.
Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table. turbo5

5:21pm Sun 16 Dec 12

cod_fillet says...

All schools should be free from any (primitive) religion association! I can't believe the UK allows this education system. How ancient thinking.

My kids will attend a free school, regardless how many miles they have to travel everyday.
All schools should be free from any (primitive) religion association! I can't believe the UK allows this education system. How ancient thinking. My kids will attend a free school, regardless how many miles they have to travel everyday. cod_fillet

5:42pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

cod_fillet wrote:
All schools should be free from any (primitive) religion association! I can't believe the UK allows this education system. How ancient thinking.

My kids will attend a free school, regardless how many miles they have to travel everyday.
Would you be happy sending your children where 98.7% of those attending don't have English as their first language, Try Stoneyholme or Heasandford in Burnley, I am sure they wouldn't get the attention required. Also isn't it fun watching your child in a navity or carol singing ? I presume you wont be celebrating Christmas ? wanting marriage or christening or burials in a Church,
[quote][p][bold]cod_fillet[/bold] wrote: All schools should be free from any (primitive) religion association! I can't believe the UK allows this education system. How ancient thinking. My kids will attend a free school, regardless how many miles they have to travel everyday.[/p][/quote]Would you be happy sending your children where 98.7% of those attending don't have English as their first language, Try Stoneyholme or Heasandford in Burnley, I am sure they wouldn't get the attention required. Also isn't it fun watching your child in a navity or carol singing ? I presume you wont be celebrating Christmas ? wanting marriage or christening or burials in a Church, turbo5

6:25pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

sharonAccy wrote:
Gives the children of accrington a fighting chance of going to their "local" c of e school instead of missing out cause of all the kids from burnley and surrounding areas, especially when we go to church each week
I find that strange considering the criteria is on church attendance how did you miss out if you attend every week ? how long have you been going ? a few months prior to selection is not going to be enough, they will go back years. Would these schools be as successful if they only selected kids from the catchment area rather taking the cream from the surrounding towns ? I think not !
[quote][p][bold]sharonAccy[/bold] wrote: Gives the children of accrington a fighting chance of going to their "local" c of e school instead of missing out cause of all the kids from burnley and surrounding areas, especially when we go to church each week[/p][/quote]I find that strange considering the criteria is on church attendance how did you miss out if you attend every week ? how long have you been going ? a few months prior to selection is not going to be enough, they will go back years. Would these schools be as successful if they only selected kids from the catchment area rather taking the cream from the surrounding towns ? I think not ! turbo5

7:25pm Sun 16 Dec 12

comenius says...

turbo5 wrote:
Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.
I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party.
I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG.
Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.
[quote][p][bold]turbo5[/bold] wrote: Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.[/p][/quote]I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party. I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG. Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion. comenius

7:51pm Sun 16 Dec 12

blylad says...

comenius wrote:
turbo5 wrote:
Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.
I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party.
I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG.
Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.
Very good point, every form of Christianity in the West can trace it's origins back to the Catholic Church, so to say that the Catholic high school in Burnley doesn't have a Christian ethos is laughable, inaccurate and offensive.
[quote][p][bold]comenius[/bold] wrote: [quote][p][bold]turbo5[/bold] wrote: Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.[/p][/quote]I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party. I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG. Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.[/p][/quote]Very good point, every form of Christianity in the West can trace it's origins back to the Catholic Church, so to say that the Catholic high school in Burnley doesn't have a Christian ethos is laughable, inaccurate and offensive. blylad

8:06pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

comenius wrote:
turbo5 wrote:
Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.
I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party.
I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG.
Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.
Surprised at your comment have a look on Google type in catchment areas schools Burnley and read past 5 lines in and you might learn something. this article taken from the Daily Telegraph so its not some right wing website or tabloid press.
quote
So they simply closed down a number of schools and spent £250 million of taxpayer’s money building five new ones, schools that were cleverly gerrymandered to have a suitable mixed Asian and white intake. Hey presto – integration really is that easy. Or maybe not. Laban picks up the story:''
Unquote


However its not just down to race as there are some fantastic Asian students who could grace any school, A major factor in a schools performance is demographics, and there is no point denying that ! if you would have read past the 5 lines
[quote][p][bold]comenius[/bold] wrote: [quote][p][bold]turbo5[/bold] wrote: Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.[/p][/quote]I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party. I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG. Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.[/p][/quote]Surprised at your comment have a look on Google type in catchment areas schools Burnley and read past 5 lines in and you might learn something. this article taken from the Daily Telegraph so its not some right wing website or tabloid press. quote So they simply closed down a number of schools and spent £250 million of taxpayer’s money building five new ones, schools that were cleverly gerrymandered to have a suitable mixed Asian and white intake. Hey presto – integration really is that easy. Or maybe not. Laban picks up the story:'' Unquote However its not just down to race as there are some fantastic Asian students who could grace any school, A major factor in a schools performance is demographics, and there is no point denying that ! if you would have read past the 5 lines turbo5

9:13pm Sun 16 Dec 12

comenius says...

turbo5 wrote:
comenius wrote:
turbo5 wrote:
Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.
I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party.
I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG.
Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.
Surprised at your comment have a look on Google type in catchment areas schools Burnley and read past 5 lines in and you might learn something. this article taken from the Daily Telegraph so its not some right wing website or tabloid press.
quote
So they simply closed down a number of schools and spent £250 million of taxpayer’s money building five new ones, schools that were cleverly gerrymandered to have a suitable mixed Asian and white intake. Hey presto – integration really is that easy. Or maybe not. Laban picks up the story:''
Unquote


However its not just down to race as there are some fantastic Asian students who could grace any school, A major factor in a schools performance is demographics, and there is no point denying that ! if you would have read past the 5 lines
Turbo it doesn't matter what newspaper you quote from, the percentage of Asian heritage students in 4 of the 5 Burnley schools, , is very low. If you can't take my word for it then look at their recent Ofsted reports, (2012), or better still go and have a look around at them. Why not count the number of non-whites as they leave school. You'll find that I am correct.
I don't want to single out any individual school, but this is taken from a 2012 Burnley Secondary School Ofsted report, and the corresponding statement about ethnicity in the other schools is very similar. The report states:"The overwhelming majority of pupils are from a White British background." Now I'm no fan of Ofsted, but I think they can be relied upon to give an honest appraisal of statistical data.
As for reading beyond the first 5 lines: if you make a statement of "fact" that is so wildly inaccurate in your opening paragraph then you can hardly expect people to take you seriously. Your points about demographics are of course true, as they are in any town, but opening a new school, and thereby creating even greater funding issues for the remaining ones is hardly likely to improve things for those who come from under-privileged backgrounds.
Whether we agree or not that the new PFI schools should have been built is a separate issue, but now they are here they will have to be paid for - by me and you. Opening not one, but two new schools, and creating all that additional unwanted capacity would be crazy in these financial times, but it wouldn't surprise me if it happens because it fits Gove's agenda.
[quote][p][bold]turbo5[/bold] wrote: [quote][p][bold]comenius[/bold] wrote: [quote][p][bold]turbo5[/bold] wrote: Its a no brainer really, who wants to send their kids to a Burnley school which has been divided up into catchment areas like a social engineering experiment to ensure an even percentage of Asian kids are at each school, whilst also ensuring that no affluent catchment area has all the children at one school. So the parents turn to religion, for one a hour a week and the odd bit of extra effort your kids get to go to church schools albeit out of town, where the A-C grades including English and Maths is over double any school in Burnley. (They are as good as most Grammar schools) The moral of the story is if parents are willing to put the effort into getting their kids into the right school they wil put the effort into making sure their children do well at school. Whilst we have this education system in Burnley we will constantly have a brain drain out of town, People move out of town to ensure their kids don't go to Burnley schools. I don't blame the schools or the teachers they can only work with the material (kids) they are provided with. I know its not fair to say children from disadvantaged backgrounds don't do as well at school, unfortunately its a fact, some of the kids are coming from 2nd or 3rd generation of unemployed parents/grandparents When 75% of the Burnley population is on some sort of benefits and a higher than national percentage on free school meals what do you expect ! I predict it will only get worse. Best of luck with this new school just ensure that the selection criteria is suitably stringent, otherwise it will turn into another Burnley school propping up the countries school league table.[/p][/quote]I haven't read beyond the first 5 lines, since it is so inaccurate as to be laughable. I don't know how turbo has come to this conclusion, unless it is based on lies peddled for political reasons by some right-wing party. I can state, without fear of contradiction by statistics, that of the 5 secondary schools in Burnley, 4 of them have virtually no "Asian kids" if this is what he must call them. So to claim that there is a set percentage in each school is simply WRONG. Incidentally. Returning to the main article, I find it disappointing that a man of religion Jeff Brunton should consider that Blessed Trinity does not have a Christian ethos. He may not be personally attuned to the Catholic religion, but say that "No school in Burnley has a Christian ethos" is deeply offensive in my opinion.[/p][/quote]Surprised at your comment have a look on Google type in catchment areas schools Burnley and read past 5 lines in and you might learn something. this article taken from the Daily Telegraph so its not some right wing website or tabloid press. quote So they simply closed down a number of schools and spent £250 million of taxpayer’s money building five new ones, schools that were cleverly gerrymandered to have a suitable mixed Asian and white intake. Hey presto – integration really is that easy. Or maybe not. Laban picks up the story:'' Unquote However its not just down to race as there are some fantastic Asian students who could grace any school, A major factor in a schools performance is demographics, and there is no point denying that ! if you would have read past the 5 lines[/p][/quote]Turbo it doesn't matter what newspaper you quote from, the percentage of Asian heritage students in 4 of the 5 Burnley schools, [and that includes Shuttleworth College (Padiham)], is very low. If you can't take my word for it then look at their recent Ofsted reports, (2012), or better still go and have a look around at them. Why not count the number of non-whites as they leave school. You'll find that I am correct. I don't want to single out any individual school, but this is taken from a 2012 Burnley Secondary School Ofsted report, and the corresponding statement about ethnicity in the other schools is very similar. The report states:"The overwhelming majority of pupils are from a White British background." Now I'm no fan of Ofsted, but I think they can be relied upon to give an honest appraisal of statistical data. As for reading beyond the first 5 lines: if you make a statement of "fact" that is so wildly inaccurate in your opening paragraph then you can hardly expect people to take you seriously. Your points about demographics are of course true, as they are in any town, but opening a new school, and thereby creating even greater funding issues for the remaining ones is hardly likely to improve things for those who come from under-privileged backgrounds. Whether we agree or not that the new PFI schools should have been built is a separate issue, but now they are here they will have to be paid for - by me and you. Opening not one, but two new schools, and creating all that additional unwanted capacity would be crazy in these financial times, but it wouldn't surprise me if it happens because it fits Gove's agenda. comenius

9:45pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

@Comenius:- Firstly, thank you for responding this time in a none antaganistic manner, debate and differences of opinion are good and shouldn't mean that you need to attack however much you disagree with their comments.
Back on topic, I am sure you have looked up the Ofsted reports, I have read a few but at the present I have been more interested in Primary education and haven't really gone into any detail on secondary school ethnic percentage intakes. However the boundaries were redrawn after the riots and it is documented in numerous articles, but saying that I believe what you are saying that a certain school has a high percentage than the rest and the catchment area selection has been watered down more in line with trying to accomodate peoples choices.
As we both agreed its not just down to race, demographics are the issue. I work with nurmerous senior people in Burnley and they have relocated from all over the UK but they never move to Burnley, maybe an outlying villiage, such as Fence, Roughlee, etc , Ribble Valley, Rossendale Valley, Preston, but never Burnley. I ask why because we have some beautiful affordable luxury houses and they say schools ! They want Grammar schools or a high performing school, When it comes down to our children or morals go out of the window I think most decent parents would jump through fire to get their kids into the right school. I know a few who have sold up and downsized to move to the Ribble valley just for that reason.
@Comenius:- Firstly, thank you for responding this time in a none antaganistic manner, debate and differences of opinion are good and shouldn't mean that you need to attack however much you disagree with their comments. Back on topic, I am sure you have looked up the Ofsted reports, I have read a few but at the present I have been more interested in Primary education and haven't really gone into any detail on secondary school ethnic percentage intakes. However the boundaries were redrawn after the riots and it is documented in numerous articles, but saying that I believe what you are saying that a certain school has a high percentage than the rest and the catchment area selection has been watered down more in line with trying to accomodate peoples choices. As we both agreed its not just down to race, demographics are the issue. I work with nurmerous senior people in Burnley and they have relocated from all over the UK but they never move to Burnley, maybe an outlying villiage, such as Fence, Roughlee, etc , Ribble Valley, Rossendale Valley, Preston, but never Burnley. I ask why because we have some beautiful affordable luxury houses and they say schools ! They want Grammar schools or a high performing school, When it comes down to our children or morals go out of the window I think most decent parents would jump through fire to get their kids into the right school. I know a few who have sold up and downsized to move to the Ribble valley just for that reason. turbo5

10:41pm Sun 16 Dec 12

comenius says...

ok turbo. I agree with you that holding differing opinions and debating them is healthy, and we should do so with respect. What winds me up however is when people express an opinion as a statement of fact. I think that there was a view held by some that the BSF project was an experiment in social engineering, and I believe that much of this was due to BNP propaganda. Whether this was true or not I can't say, (and it is in any case irrelevant now). But what I can say is that at this moment in time: one Burnley School, (probably for geographical reasons), has an overwhelming majority of Asian heritage students, 2 have virtually none, and the other 2 are probably less than 10% - though I can't give you exact figures. There is definitely no quota system as you implied originally. As to whether having one school predominantly Asian is a good thing, -well that's a new debate.
Incidentally, if this new school is to be promoted as a Christian School, it will be interesting to find out what the local Anglican and Catholic clergy think of the proposal.
ok turbo. I agree with you that holding differing opinions and debating them is healthy, and we should do so with respect. What winds me up however is when people express an opinion as a statement of fact. I think that there was a view held by some that the BSF project was an experiment in social engineering, and I believe that much of this was due to BNP propaganda. Whether this was true or not I can't say, (and it is in any case irrelevant now). But what I can say is that at this moment in time: one Burnley School, (probably for geographical reasons), has an overwhelming majority of Asian heritage students, 2 have virtually none, and the other 2 are probably less than 10% - though I can't give you exact figures. There is definitely no quota system as you implied originally. As to whether having one school predominantly Asian is a good thing, -well that's a new debate. Incidentally, if this new school is to be promoted as a Christian School, it will be interesting to find out what the local Anglican and Catholic clergy think of the proposal. comenius

11:36pm Sun 16 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

I have been looking at the Ofsted results and they don't make good reading. Blessed Trinty is mainly Catholic so obviously attracts majority from that faith. Shuttleworth is mainly Padiham and Cheapside. so it only reallly leaves
Unity, Sir John Thursby and Hameldom,
Unity was the old Towneley school however majority of that area has been knocked down, so it catchment area is spread out
Sir John Thursby is the most populated school as it pulls all Duke bar, Stoneyhome areas and Harle Syke
Hameldom is nearly empty (this was the old Habergham and Ivy bank) a lot of properties have been knocked down from this catchment area (Accrington road)
The more affulent areas around Ightenhill, Worsthorne, Cliviger etc (Reborn Christians) send bus loads to Accrington and Blackburn and Holy Trinty .
So considering that a new free school may open with a Christian ethos (I doubt it will really affect Blessed Trinty)
Hambledom and Unity will suffer badly. I think public opinion will take a while to convince parents not to send their children to St Christophers with a 79% GCSE A-C grade compared to the Burnley schools 38%-41% Therefore the new school will be attracting from these schools, It wouldn't surprise me if they don't take over Hameldom as the new free school. as it could be empty shortly.
I have been looking at the Ofsted results and they don't make good reading. Blessed Trinty is mainly Catholic so obviously attracts majority from that faith. Shuttleworth is mainly Padiham and Cheapside. so it only reallly leaves Unity, Sir John Thursby and Hameldom, Unity was the old Towneley school however majority of that area has been knocked down, so it catchment area is spread out Sir John Thursby is the most populated school as it pulls all Duke bar, Stoneyhome areas and Harle Syke Hameldom is nearly empty (this was the old Habergham and Ivy bank) a lot of properties have been knocked down from this catchment area (Accrington road) The more affulent areas around Ightenhill, Worsthorne, Cliviger etc (Reborn Christians) send bus loads to Accrington and Blackburn and Holy Trinty . So considering that a new free school may open with a Christian ethos (I doubt it will really affect Blessed Trinty) Hambledom and Unity will suffer badly. I think public opinion will take a while to convince parents not to send their children to St Christophers with a 79% GCSE A-C grade compared to the Burnley schools 38%-41% Therefore the new school will be attracting from these schools, It wouldn't surprise me if they don't take over Hameldom as the new free school. as it could be empty shortly. turbo5

8:06am Mon 17 Dec 12

comenius says...

Interesting analysis turbo, but you have not included the new Technical school at the Weaver's Triangle. You have to remember that this will have a further 700+ places, so if the free school is approved there will be over 1300 empty places.
As for a free school taking over Hameldon, I can't see it.
1. Location
2.They would be mad to take on a cripplingly expensive PFI contract when there are other options available.
Interesting analysis turbo, but you have not included the new Technical school at the Weaver's Triangle. You have to remember that this will have a further 700+ places, so if the free school is approved there will be over 1300 empty places. As for a free school taking over Hameldon, I can't see it. 1. Location 2.They would be mad to take on a cripplingly expensive PFI contract when there are other options available. comenius

5:57pm Mon 17 Dec 12

turbo5 says...

comenius wrote:
Interesting analysis turbo, but you have not included the new Technical school at the Weaver's Triangle. You have to remember that this will have a further 700+ places, so if the free school is approved there will be over 1300 empty places.
As for a free school taking over Hameldon, I can't see it.
1. Location
2.They would be mad to take on a cripplingly expensive PFI contract when there are other options available.
Really good valid points, I suppose the only option they have in a shrinking Burnley population is to try and attract people from outside town, which I some how doubt when compared to the schools in the surrounding area. Maybe the Technical school will attract more from out of town especially if they have links into specialist Industries like aerospace (Aircelle and the like) through Training 2000. Eventually I can see a stop to the mass exodus to out of town schools via the religious route especially when they have massive schools stood empty costing millions. Perhaps they can turn one into a SEN school or some other form of school like the old reform schools etc
[quote][p][bold]comenius[/bold] wrote: Interesting analysis turbo, but you have not included the new Technical school at the Weaver's Triangle. You have to remember that this will have a further 700+ places, so if the free school is approved there will be over 1300 empty places. As for a free school taking over Hameldon, I can't see it. 1. Location 2.They would be mad to take on a cripplingly expensive PFI contract when there are other options available.[/p][/quote]Really good valid points, I suppose the only option they have in a shrinking Burnley population is to try and attract people from outside town, which I some how doubt when compared to the schools in the surrounding area. Maybe the Technical school will attract more from out of town especially if they have links into specialist Industries like aerospace (Aircelle and the like) through Training 2000. Eventually I can see a stop to the mass exodus to out of town schools via the religious route especially when they have massive schools stood empty costing millions. Perhaps they can turn one into a SEN school or some other form of school like the old reform schools etc turbo5

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