So foolish

Published: 15 July, 2010

• IT’S more than sad to see the drastic cuts in funding for refurbishment of Camden’s schools.

It’s foolish!

There is a huge amount of solid evidence to show that good buildings do make a difference to the performance of school children.

Investing in these buildings now, if done correctly, is also an opportunity for boosting the local economy and keeping people in work.

As it happens, the Green Party opposes academies as removing control from local communities and certainly there is some truth in the claim that the BSF scheme was wasteful.

Allocating boroughs fixed sums of money, rather than making all bid in accordance with need, encourages unnecessary schemes and expensive ones.

Also the requirement that the costly private finance initiative be used and information and communications technology contracts entered into with the consortium, giving them a sweetener, added unnecessarily to these costs.

None of this should distract us from the main point.

Greens across the country will be pushing for continuing investment but in a way that avoids poor procurement, and huge profits for the developers.

Smaller schemes will also allow for more use of local companies.

In addition we will press to avoid unnecessary demolition and where possible retain and refurbish existing buildings, which is often far more beneficial to the schools, the environment, to budgets and to the local community.

The Greens are also pushing for new and existing schools to remain in the control of the community and not a private and unaccountable provider.

CHARLES HARRIS
Green Party candidate Frognal & Fitzjohns ward,
by-election