The planned merger of schools in Almondbury is a great chance for a fresh start.
That’s the view of Huddersfield MP Barry Sheerman, who has been closely involved with parents concerned about the “super school” plans.
The veteran MP admits the consultation process carried out by Kirklees did have faults.
Hundreds of parents voiced objections to the plan to merge Almondbury High School, Almondbury Junior School and Greenside Infants School into one campus, serving children from 3 to 16. But their views were over-ridden by Cabinet councillors, who backed the scheme.
Mr Sheerman said: “Certainly I hope Kirklees Council will learn lessons from the consultation process, which was not all it should have been, and I have concerns that none of the Almondbury councillors were involved in the decision.
“I organised public meetings to hear the views of everyone concerned, including many families.
“My view now is that we have a great opportunity for a fresh start in Almondbury.
“We all want to see a better quality of education for children in Almondbury now and in the future.
“In my conversations with Ofsted, they have told me the High School is doing well but there are concerns over pupil numbers.
“These changes are being driven by Ofsted and Department for Education rules and regulations, but it does give us a chance of a fresh start. We need to grasp that and to do that we need more resources to ensure we have a top-class experienced head teacher and management team in place.
Parents expressed their concern over the Cabinet decision and plan to continue to oppose the plans over the next few weeks.
The plan is due to come back to Cabinet in six weeks’ time.
