Ill-informed on the problem of school places

In response to last week’s Comment “Still not enough school places, so our children suffer” the council’s Finance Chief Cllr Theo Blackwell sent the following letter to Labour party school governors in the borough. 

• THURSDAY’S New Journal contained a fundamentally ill-informed editorial on the council’s response to school places and school funding pressures in our borough.  While I have sympathy with the plight of the parents cited on the front page, the editorial left out some basic facts. 

It claims Camden has been “slow to act” on school places, without ever giving due consideration to the financial constraints we live under, nor the steps taken to remedy the situation.

The editorial does not mention the withdrawal of £200million of Building Schools for the Future money (which would have been used to expand schools locally) by the government; 

It accuses us of a “policy vacuum” on the issue, and does not refer to the groundbreaking  Camden Education Commission set up to look at future school and parental needs in the borough. 

It does not refer to the £100m investment in schools we are undertaking via the Community Investment Programme through the sale and redevelopment of council assets; 

It does not refer to the potential rebuilding of primary schools at Netley, Hawley, King’s Cross etc – taken together with the CIP the largest investment in Primary schools in since Camden was incorporated. 

It specifically does not mention Liddell Road, which will provide a new school in West Hampstead for the likes of children mentioned on the front cover; 

No attempt was made by the editor to establish facts so this is simply very poor, last-minute journalism by the CNJ’s editor, ironically at a time when the media is under scrutiny and the CNJ is trying to brand itself as a last remaining bastion of print journalism.

We take the issue of schools (and early years) funding very seriously in our Labour Group (as you do too) given Camden’s proud history in supporting schools and childcare.  Schools investment and modernisation is at the heart of Camden Labour’s strategy. 

THEO BLACKWELL
Town Hall 
NW1 

Published: 21 July, 2011