Issue - meetings

Closure of Tunbridge Wells High School and its replacement with a Government Funded Academy

Meeting: 08/01/2009 - School Organisation Advisory Board (Item 3)

3 Proposed Closure of Tunbridge Wells (Community) High School to replace with a Government Funded Academy pdf icon PDF 57 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

(Report by Director, Operations)

 

(1)       This report presented the results of a public consultation exercise undertaken on the proposal to close Tunbridge Wells High School in order that it may be replaced with a Government funded Academy.  The report also sought the views of the Advisory Board on the issuing of a public notice to close the school.

 

(2)       Mr K G Lynes was present for this item and spoke as the Local County Member.  He said he fully supported the proposal and said that one only had to visit an existing academy and talk to the teachers to discover how good an initiative they were.  He spoke about the links between Tunbridge Wells High School and the Skinners School and the successful mentoring scheme which had been established.  He said that he hoped that all efforts would be made to ensure that these links continued once the new Academy was in place.  He also said he believed the Academy would not only provide a focal point for the Sherwood Park Community but would add to the social cohesion across Tunbridge Wells as a whole.

 

(3)       During the course of discussion, Members of the Advisory Board raised a number of points of detail to which officers responded.  Following further discussion, the Advisory Board AGREED to the issuing of a public notice to close Tunbridge Wells High School in order for it to be replaced with a Government funded Academy.  Mr A R Poole abstained from taking part in the discussion on this proposal as he is also a Member of the Planning Applications Committee.