Deputies fear delay will cement plans for schools
DEPUTIES have been accused of wanting to ‘bulldoze through’ plans for the one school on two sites secondary education model.
A sursis from deputies Carl Meerveld and John Gollop wanted members to sursis Education, Sport & Culture’s proposals for clarity on the direction of their review and to prepare a supplemental report.
This report would have included the recommendations of teaching and support staff plus relevant unions for the various models of secondary education which they believed were best for the students.
Workshops would have been held including these groups and other key stakeholders to determine these models.
But the sursis was rejected before it was even debated, and Deputy Meerveld said he was shocked and disappointed.
This sursis was, he said, ‘an eminently reasonable and sensible motion to pause debate on the very questionable and opportunist policy letter laid by the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture.’
‘This vote illustrates the determination of some deputies to bulldoze through the one school on two sites model for education regardless of any objections raised by our teachers, support staff, douzaines, parents, students and other members of our community,’ said Deputy Meerveld in a statement.
‘It represents a slap in the face to thousands of people, including teachers, who communicated objections, signed petitions, marched or tied green ribbons.’
He went on to say that the decision was ‘a shocking breach of the States’ own guidelines’ which were designed to ensure that critical projects, such as the transformation of the education system, were developed according to the highest standards of good governance.
These guidelines required key stakeholder participation in a project such as this from the start.
‘The now inevitable delay of our upcoming election will enable the existing Committee for Education, Sport & Culture to stay in post for an extended period.
‘I am concerned that they will exploit this period to proceed with developments and appointments which will restrict or frustrate the efforts of any future Assembly to implement anything other than their one school on two sites model.’
