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SCHOOL TRANSPORT
The government’s Draft School Transport Bill is in its final week of consultation. Although nothing is finalised, and pilot schemes are still to come, many schools and parents are worried about one of the proposals which seeks to end the current automatic right to free school transport for those who live more than three miles from their nearest suitable school.
Libby Purves is joined by Gwyneth Dunwoody MP and Chairman of the Parliamentary Transport Select Committee and Paul Osborne, from Sustrans, a national charity heavily involved with the National Cycle Network and practical projects promoting sustainable transport.
Will proposals ease school-run traffic congestion, or drive more parents into their cars in order to avoid paying their children’s bus fares?
LAMBETH ACADEMY
Following our interview with author John O’Farrell about parents’ successful attempt to create a new secondary school, we visit the Lambeth Academy as it gears up for its opening in September. Lambeth Academy is one of an increasing number of secondary schools being built with direct funding from the Government and a sponsor. In Lambeth’s case it is the church-founded United Learning Trust. Its status as an Academy will give it freedom from national curriculum and admission constraints.
So how do you start a school from scratch? Sara Parker talks to those who will benefit from the school and takes a tour with principal Pat Millichamp as the state of the art building and curriculum receive their finishing touches.
SCHOOL SUPPORT STAFF
The National Workforce Remodelling Agreement between Government, employers and most school workforce unions was signed by all parties concerned in January 2003, with the notable exception of the National Union of Teachers.
The aim of the agreement was to improve standards in schools by giving teachers more time to concentrate on actually teaching. Mostly, this was to be achieved through increased support from classroom assistants, but this cannot be done without a change in the responsibilities of these support staff and some say that they are now being pushed and bullied into teaching whole classes.
The classroom assistants’ union Unison is currently holding its annual conference, and yesterday afternoon disgruntled delegates voted to renegotiate the workforce agreement and ‘consider suspending’ their participation depending on the outcome of new negotiations. Libby Purves talks to Christine McAnea, Unison’s Head of Education about the
Additional information:
Paul Osborne
Project Director for Sustrans’ Safe Routes to Schools project. Paul is a traffic engineer and planner, a former member of the Government’s original School Travel Advisory Group (STAG), and a co-author of the Department for Transport’s current guidance on School Travel Plans.
Sustrans
Safe Routes to Schools
Gwyneth Dunwoody MP
Chairman of the Parliamentary Transport Select Committee
Lambeth Academy
UNISON
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