‘It’s not The Cotswold School; it never will be’

That it is an outstanding school cannot be denied. Of the many schools in that catchment, it is oversubscribed at all year levels, and as Professor Sophie von Strumm (York University Department of Education) recently said, ‘Outstanding schools attract outstanding children because parents move there’.

In the debate in September, when the States Assembly considered the Education policy letter, Deputy Graham told members that last year The Cotswold School outperformed ‘not only our sixth form centre here, it outperformed the Ladies’ College and it outperformed the Elizabeth College too’.

It is what he did not tell the Assembly that matters. GCSE grades required to enter The Cotswold School sixth form are significantly higher on a subject-by-subject basis than those for the Grammar School sixth form centre, thus restricting the numbers entering from Year 11 and maximising the opportunity to produce a higher level of success at A-level. To ensure it has a viable number of sixth form students who meet the high entry requirement, The Cotswold School website states that it fills vacancies by recruiting pupils from across the UK and abroad. This is therefore achieved without reference to catchment area.

It was claimed in the Assembly that, having visited The Cotswold School, one would not know that there were some 1,400 pupils on the site. That is perhaps because it is situated on an area of 30 acres. I suggest that 1,400 crammed onto the Les Beaucamps site, comprising 10 acres, will be a lot more noticeable.

In addition to superior sports facilities, The Cotswold School has a dedicated bespoke sixth form centre. This comprises a fully networked study room with 60 PCs and a large common room with space to work, socialise and eat. The sixth form is described as the ‘flagship of the school’. Neither Victor Hugo nor de Saumarez will have dedicated self-study facilities for sixth formers.

At the recent drop-in session for residents living in the vicinity of Les Beaucamps School, I had the opportunity to meet Liz Coffey, the executive head of Lisia School. During our conversation she explained that sixth form pupils will not need specific areas of the school for private study or personal space. Instead they can use the refectory (this is situated in an open area and adjacent to a staircase serving another level and will be used daily to feed up to 1,400 pupils in four sittings, plus setting up and cleaning time). Other Education staff at the drop-in had told me that those wishing to study privately can find classrooms which may be empty from time to time. I was told that, in this way, the use of all space within the building will be maximised, including the school library (intended for less than half the numbers proposed in the new regime).

Mrs Coffey said that the entry requirement for acceptance to the Grammar School sixth form was lower than many schools in England, and I asked whether entry to the two sixth forms would require higher levels of GCSE attainment than at present. The answer was that to do so would risk making the two sixth forms (one at each site) unviable. With a ratio of one teacher to 10 pupils, some subjects are already at risk. I quoted the aspiration of matching The Cotswold School. The reply was; ‘This is not The Cotswold School; it never will be’.

The infrastructure to get 1,400 pupils to and from The Cotswold School is very different from that serving the two proposed ‘colleges’. The Traffic Impact Assessment for both Guernsey ‘colleges’ makes grim reading and the glossing over of the many warning signs of traffic chaos and potential risk to pupils is alarming. To mitigate these issues, hundreds of children will be encouraged to walk or cycle to school. The benefits of exercise are being promoted, whilst at the same time building over existing limited sports and recreation areas, which will have the opposite effect.

Deputy Fallaize claims that the education changes being forced on our community are not an experiment. He is correct. An experiment is carried out in a measured way, seeking to eliminate the risks, and the results are acted upon only when success is likely. What is proposed is untried and untested in the Guernsey context. The Assembly has abdicated responsibility for delivery of this project, having made decisions based on inadequate or misleading information, and without a mandate from the electorate. The majority of deputies are prepared to risk the future education standards of generations to come. Unlike parents in The Cotswold School catchment where there are a number of alternative schools to choose from, both public and private, this island has moved from ‘your schools, your choice’ to ‘one school, no choice’.

Please lobby your douzaines and your deputies to stop this ill-thought-out project now, before it is too late.

BRENDAN MURPHY

guernseybrendan@outlook.com

Editor’s footnote: Deputy Graham replies:

I am very keen to respond to the points raised in your correspondent’s letter, but would like to do so in more detail than would be achievable in a response to be published underneath on the letters page. As such, we have supplied the editor of the Press with a detailed response that he assures us will be published tomorrow.

Liz Coffey also replies:

I talked to many residents who attended the recent drop-ins. It is unfortunate that the correspondent has sought to represent in this way any responses that I gave to questions asked. I am happy to provide further details to the correspondent to clarify the points made.