"Heartless" Council Votes to Close Sulivan Primary School
Despite majority of local people disagreeing with proposal
There has been an angry reaction from parents and local residents after Hammersmith and Fulham Council rubber stamped plans to close Sulivan Primary School and move the pupils to New King's School on New King's Road.
Hundreds of protestors turned out at the cabinet meeting, held at Hammersmith Town Hall on January 20.
The decision means that the two primary schools will be amalgamated on the New King's Road site, with Sulivan School's site bulldozed to make way for the Fulham Boys School, a Church of England Free Secondary School for 800 boys.
This morning local people have been responding on Twitter by branding councillors as "heartless" and the "disgraceful" decision made "out of greed and spite".
Paul Kennedy, chair of Hammersmith and Fulham LibDems, who have already called the proposed closure "a perverse and ideological plan" tweeted @paulkenfulham: " Shockingly gratuitous decision to close LBHF's top primary school."
The recommendation to the council in a report by Ian Heggs, Tri-borough Director of Schools Commissioning was as follows:
That, following full consideration of all relevant matters, including in particular all of the
consultation responses, all of the representations received during the statutory notice
period, the factors set out in this report and the Equalities Impact Assessment, Cabinet
agrees to implement the proposals for the discontinuance of Sulivan Primary School and
the enlargement of New King’s Primary School, subject to the following conditions being met by 1 August 2014:
(1) planning permissions being granted for both the interim
accommodation at the Sulivan site and the proposed extension and remodelling of the New
King’s Primary School buildings (see Appendix G); and
(2) the making of any agreement under section 1 of the Academies Act 2010 for the establishment of a New King’s Primary School as an academy; and authorises the Director of Schools Commissioning and Director of Law to undertake the necessary procedures to implement the proposals, including giving formal notification to the Department for Education.
This morning campaigners fighting to save the school tweeted @saveoursulivan: " If the proposals to amalgamate were to be standing on their own, why is it conditional upon New Kings academy application?"
The council says cabinet members considered the outcome of a consultation involving hundreds of responses and representations from residents, parents and school staff.
However, as we previously reported, this consultation showed that the majority of local people were against the proposal - with 2,226 disagreeing and 1,367 agreeing.
There were also a number of representations from local organisations disagreeing with the proposa, including PRARA
(Residents' Association for Peterborough Road and other roads around South Park), HDRA
(Hurlingham District Residents Association), The Fulham Society, City Events Ltd. the Polo
in the Park organisers, H&F Liberal Democrats, The Executive Board of the Fulham College
Academy Trust and the NUT, and nearby Hurlingham and
Chelsea School, while two submissions agreeing with the proposal were received from the Chair
and Head of New King’s Primary School and Greg Hands MP.
You can read more about this here.
In an updated supplementary agenda, Mr Heggs also acknowledges:
The majority of the representations received by the close of the statutory notice period of 11
December 2013 were opposed to the proposal. Nine representations from organisations
were received objecting to the proposal, plus a further 100 from individuals and a letter
signed by 10 LBHF headteachers and a ‘Stop the closure of Sulivan Primary’ petition with
969 signatures.
A representation supporting the proposal was made by New King’s Primary
School; a further three were received supporting the proposal, two from individuals, and one
from the Chairman of the West London Free School Academy Trust.
You can read this full supplementary agenda here.
It is now proposed that from September 1 this year, New King’s Primary School will be
permanently enlarged to accommodate pupils of both schools, while Sulivan Primary School will be discontinued. The enlargement would take place in two phases, with New King's operating from Sulivan's existing site for the academic year 2014/2015 refurbishment and enlargement of New King's School takes place, and in
September 2015 it would return to the enlarged school.
It is estimated that the cost of the alterations to New King's School will be around £3.8 million.
Fulham Boys School meanwhile says it has identified temporary premises where it can open in September and operate for at least two years.
January 21, 2014
