Issue - meetings

St Aldhelm’s Secondary Academy in Poole has a Published Admissions Number (PAN) of 180 pupils, this being the number of pupils that can be admitted into each year group.  Until recent years this number was not fully utilised, and the school had unfilled places. However, the school is now filling to capacity. In addition, forecasts show pressure on Secondary School places in BCP over the short to medium term.

Following a significant investment in the school infrastructure by the Department for Education (DfE) to support a change of Academy sponsor and to drive improvement, the school buildings are fit for purpose but will not support 180 pupils in all year groups.

Delegated Powers were used to agree an investment of £390k in May 2020 that enabled additional capacity to be created to allow 180 pupils to be admitted in September 2020.

A further investment of £610k is now required to allow the PAN of 180 to be maintained permanently. This can be funded from existing DfE Basic Needs capital grant. Cabinet were presented with an initial cost range for this of £460k to £610k at the May 2020 meeting; this report further refines this budget and provides up-to-date evidence supporting the Basic Need requirement for these places.

RESOLVED that Cabinet approves the allocation of £610k of Basic Need capital grant to support the delivery of five additional classrooms and ancillary spaces at St Aldhelm’s Academy to allow the school to continue to admit 180 pupils per year.

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Covid Resilience, Schools and Skills

Reason

To enable the creation of additional capacity to reflect demand for places at the school and to ensure the council can meets its requirement to provide sufficient mainstream secondary places for BCP children and young people.

The Portfolio Holder for Covid Resilience, Public Health and Education presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'G' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

Cabinet was informed that St Aldhelm’s Secondary Academy in Poole had a Published Admissions Number (PAN) of 180 pupils, this being the number of pupils that can be admitted into each year group, and that until recent years this number year hadn’t been fully utilised, and the school had had unfilled places. Further to this Cabinet was advised that the school was now filling to capacity, and that forecasts showed pressure on Secondary School places in BCP over the short to medium term.

In relation to this Cabinet were informed that there had been significant investment in the school infrastructure by the Department for Education to support a change of Academy sponsor and to drive improvement, and that delegated powers had been used in May 2020 that had enabled additional capacity to be created through the investment of £390k which allowed 180 pupils to be admitted in September 2020.

Cabinet were advised that approval for a further investment of £610k was now required to allow the PAN of 180 to be maintained permanently. It was reported that this could be funded from existing DfE Basic Needs capital grant, and that this report refined the budget and provided up to date evidence supporting the Basic Need requirement for these places.

RESOLVED that Cabinet approves the allocation of £610k of Basic Need capital grant to support the delivery of five additional classrooms and ancillary spaces at St Aldhelm’s Academy to allow the school to continue to admit 180 pupils per year.

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Covid Resilience, Public Health and Education