Decision details

(The Chairman declared consideration of this item to be urgent because  although it had been intended to report on this matter to the meeting of the  Advisory Board in March 2008, the DCSF, under the direction of the Minister, had requested the County Council’s consultation to be moved ahead as expediently as possible, to ensure funding was made available for the benefit of the school and community).

(1)       Axton Chase School is an 11-19 mixed (non-selected foundation) high school which serves both rural and urban communities located in the Dartford area.  In Axton Chase School, the socio-economic profile of the student intake is below national and Kent average overall.  The proportion of students with a Statement of Special Educational Needs is 6%, above the Kent (2.8%) and the National average (2.2%).  The proportion of students eligible for free school meals is 10%, which is below the national average of 13.6% and the Kent average of 7.9%.

(2)       The vision for the Axtane Academy is that it will develop new first class approaches to education.  The Academy will have a particular focus on vocational education, creating a mix of academic and vocational experiences.  The Academy will also specialise in science and the creative and expressive arts with a bias to technology based programmes.  It would also have a specialist centre for students in the Autistic Spectrum.  The Academy would also form part of a hard federation with the Leigh Technology Academy which is the lead sponsor, with the County Council being a co-sponsor together with the University of Kent.

(3)       During the course of discussion, Mrs Angell expressed strong concerns about the way the consultation relating to the establishment of this Academy had been handled to date.  She said there had been little timely information made available to either the school, parents or elected Members.  She said she understood that there were circumstances that needed to be taken into account when considering when information should be made public but that elected Members ought to be given relevant information even if for a period of time that had to be on a confidential basis.

(4)      Dr Craig said that the County Council was totally constrained in these matters by Government rules and procedures and that timely information had been provided as soon as the County Council had been told by the Minister that the consultation process could begin.  However, he understood the point being made about the position of elected Members and he said that he would speak to the Department on that particular point and advise Members of its response.

(5)       During the course of further discussion, Members of the Advisory Board raised a number of points relating to a range of matters including seeking confirmation that when the Academy comes into place, there would be one Governing Body which would oversee both the Axtane Academy and the Leigh Technology Academy.  Officers also confirmed that although the admission arrangements to the two schools would be set by the Governing Body, it would nonetheless have to comply with the Admissions Code.  It was also said that the new Academy should not draw any more numbers than the current school was now but that did not effect where those numbers may actually come from.  Officers also confirmed that the staff at the school had been informed of these proposals as had the Unions and that there would be further consultations with these groups during the course of the formal consultation process.

(6)       The Advisory Board unanimously agreed that a public consultation exercise should be undertaken in conjunction with the Governing Body on the proposal for the closure of the Axton Chase School and its replacement with a Government funded Academy.