During previous meetings, we have been repeatedly told it is not the Authorities intention for any child to leave Llangennech School and due to this a transport or community assessment was not required. However, recent evidence shows that in addition to the 91 that have already sought English medium other than in Llangennech a further 20 plus pupils have been removed or not started at the school in relation to the implications, if the proposal goes ahead and this number will continue rising. The only English medium school that could accommodate these pupils is Hendy School but this does not have a safe route to school. Following this information, we believe under the School Organisation Code 2013 a community and transport assessment needs to be carried out before any decision can be made. Considering this information, Are you now going to carry out a community and transport assessment?
Minutes:
During previous meetings, we have been repeatedly told it is not the Authorities intention for any child to leave Llangennech School and due to this a transport or community assessment was not required. However, recent evidence shows that in addition to the 91 that have already sought English medium other than in Llangennech a further 20 plus pupils have been removed or not started at the school in relation to the implications, if the proposal goes ahead and this number will continue rising. The only English medium school that could accommodate these pupils is Hendy School but this does not have a safe route to school. Following this information, we believe under the School Organisation Code 2013 a community and transport assessment needs to be carried out before any decision can be made. Considering this information, Are you now going to carry out a community and transport assessment?
Response by Councillor J.E. Williams, Chair of the E&C Scrutiny Committee
The Chair stated that based on the Pupil Level Annual School Census data for 2016, 96 children living within the catchment area of Llangennech attended other schools. Of these, 16 children attended Welsh-medium schools, 7 attended dual-stream schools and 73 attended English-medium schools. 3 of these children attended faith-based schools. However, the movement of pupils between school catchment areas was a common circumstance across the County in both urban and rural areas.
The Local Authority was aware of some pupils who had changed schools that might have been as a result of this proposal. However, parents had a right to state a preference for different schools. For the academic year 2016/17, 31 applicants declined their place at Llangennech Infant School. However, 27 of these applications were from outside of the catchment area. Of the 4 applications from within catchment, 2 applicants accepted a place at other schools for other reasons and 2 applicants did not provide a reason for declining. Of the 31 pupils that declined a place at Llangennech Infant School, 12 pupils had stated a preference for Welsh-medium education, 4 pupils had stated a preference for English-medium education and 15 pupils did not state a language preference when completing their application form.
For the 2015/16 academic year, 16 pupils had declined their place at Llangennech Infant School. However, 10 of these applications were from outside of the catchment area. Of the 6 applications from within the catchment area, 1 accepted a place at a Welsh-medium school and one pupil moved to live elsewhere. Of the 16 pupils that declined a place at Llangennech Infant School, 10 pupils had stated a preference for Welsh-medium education, 2 pupils had stated a preference for English-medium education and 4 pupils did not state a language preference when completing their application form.
He added that the consultation document had been prepared and the consultation process conducted in compliance with the requirements of the School Organisation Code and the County Council’s proposal was for children from Llangennech to attend the local school. If the proposal was implemented, children residing within the Llangennech school catchment area who attend Llangennech School, would benefit from the Local Authority’s Admissions Policy and Transport to School Policy, which took full account of safety considerations. However, should parents decide to place their children in alternative schools where places were available, they would do so taking into consideration all the factors that applied, including the transport implications.