THE diocese of Portsmouth has challenged the process by which primary schools on the Isle of Wight have been selected for closure, arguing that insufficient consultation has taken place.
Three Church of England primary schools are among the five schools which have been scheduled for closure by the Isle of Wight Council (News, 13 September, 2024).
The decision was made by the Council’s cabinet, and, in January, was narrowly opposed in an advisory vote of the whole Council.
A final decision is due to be made by the Council’s cabinet on 6 March; but, on Thursday of last week, a formal “letter before claim” was sent, setting out the diocese’s case ahead of possible legal proceedings.
The diocesan director of education, Jeff Williams, said in a statement that the process had been “flawed from the start”.
“The reasons the council have given for school closures have been unclear, inconsistent, and risk doing further damage to communities that have already been hit hard by these ill-informed plans,” he said.
Mr Williams said that the diocese had previously been in discussions about the closure of C of E schools, and “don’t object to the closure of C of E schools on every occasion”.
In this case, however, “if the Cabinet agrees to these closures, it could set a precedent for future school closures on the Isle of Wight — that they can arbitrarily select schools for closure without fair and objective criteria being used,” Mr Williams said.
Among the objections listed by the diocese are: a failure to consult before the schools were originally identified for closure last September; a lack of clarity and consistency about the criteria used to make the decision; and the lack of explanation about why C of E- school places are over-represented in the proposed closures.
The Diocesan Board of Education (DBE) also notes that the five schools scheduled for closure are among the top nine on the Isle of Wight by percentage of children with special educational needs (SEND). The proposals “contain little information to address concerns about the displacement and increased travel time for vulnerable SEND pupils”, the diocese says.
A spokesperson for Isle of Wight Council said in a statement: “We have received the correspondence from the [DBE] and will digest its contents. Throughout the School Place Planning process, we have actively worked with all stakeholders to ensure everyone is involved in the future of School Place Planning on the island. We are unable to provide further comment at this time.”
The Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Revd Jonathan Frost, previously lodged his objection to the proposed closure of Oakfield C of E Primary, Brading C of E Primary, and Arreton St George’s C of E Primary, in a submission to the consultation process last October (News, 8 November 2024).
He wrote that he opposed the move “in the strongest possible terms”, arguing that it would lead to “damaging, unintended consequences on the wider economies of the affected communities”. He wrote that two of the schools served some of the most deprived areas of the Isle of Wight.
He also wrote that it was “profoundly unhelpful” that suggestions for alternative uses of the school sites had already been stated. “Any use of our land and schools would have to be approved by the DBE and in this case with the support of the Diocesan Bishop,” Bishop Frost wrote. “In the absence of consultation, I cannot imagine a situation where I would give my support.”
Besides the “letter before claim” issued last week, which could lead to a judicial review of the process, the DBE is preparing a case that will be submitted to the Schools Adjudicator if the Council’s Cabinet decides to proceed with the current proposals.