£6m hostels sale ‘will end free school hopes’ , say Belsize Park parents

Published: 09 June 2011
by JOSIE HINTON

PARENTS have accused Town Hall chiefs of halting plans for a new school by “rushing through” the sale of two vacant buildings.

The hostels in Belsize Park, deemed “surplus to requirements” by Camden Council, are being advertised through estate agent Knight Frank as “prime residential development opportunities”.

Labour finance chiefs at the Town Hall will use the cash from the sale of the buildings to fund a backlog of repairs to Camden schools – following the axing of more than £170million funding by education secretary Michael Gove last year.

It is thought the buildings could fetch in the region of £6million. 

But the deal would scupper a bid made by a group of parents to open a free school in the buildings, in Fitzjohns Avenue and Maresfield Gardens.

The parents, who have set up a working group, have applied to the Department for Education (DfE) and are waiting to hear if their business case has been approved.

Belsize Lib Dem councillor Tom Simon, who has been backing the parents, is calling on finance bosses to delay the sale until the DfE decision in September. He said: “We’ve looked all over the area and these are the only buildings that are realistic.

“If they do get sold before we’ve even had a response back from the Department for Education it will be a massive blow to the campaign. We’ll be right back to square one.

“The most frustrating thing is that all we are likely to need is a couple of months delay over the sale until we get our answer. If we are approved,  the DfE would compensate the council.” 

Jill Barnes, a solicitor and mother of two children who is one of the leaders of the school campaign, said: “This decision is not unexpected but it’s certainly unwelcome. We haven’t got a back-up so if these buildings are sold from under us there will be no school.”

But Labour finance chief Councillor Theo Blackwell said the council could not wait around while Camden schools remain in disrepair.

He added: “The government is chopping and changing its deadlines all the time and we suspect its school funding programme is in deep trouble. 

“Are we going to wait around for Michael Gove to make up his mind? It’s too uncertain.”