Minutes:
Question:
Wokingham is proposing to provide two Special Education Needs schools, one at Rooks Nest Farm near California Crossroads and one at Garys Farm near Holme Green - both of which are in pleasant rural locations.
I note that the Borough has submitted an Equality Impact Assessment as part of the proposal to be considered by this Executive Meeting.
However, nether location is mentioned in that EqIA, and so their rural nature and the corresponding lack of Noise or Air Pollution has not been factored into the assessment.
Rather than make any assumptions as to where the two schools might end up after the Executive makes its decision tonight, would the Executive Member for Children’s Services please explain why the locations were left out of the EqIA and what that means for the actual place(s) the schools might end up being located?
Answer
An Equalities Impact Assessment assesses the likely impact of a proposal on different groups of people. Detailed assessment of the environmental impact of a proposal would normally be done as part of the preparation for submission of a planning application.
While it is indeed true that that we need to look at issues like noise and air quality when deciding whether a site is suitable for a special school, the equalities impact assessment is more about how the principle would impact on particular characteristics (such as religious belief, race, sex, disability, sexual orientation, or age) – in other words whether there would be beneficial or negative impact on such by having more special school capacity in the borough. And it shows there would be a beneficial impact.
We don’t know whether our expressions of interest will result in two special schools, one or none. We are confident that there are no environmental show-stoppers in our choice of sites, but the detailed environmental work will happen if and when we get the go-ahead for the schools.
So to answer your question directly, the reason the locations were left out is that the equalities impact assessment was assessing the impact of having more special schools on people with protected characteristics, and it doesn’t have any implications with regard to the locations of the schools.
Supplementary question:
I understand your point, but I hoped for consideration of the impact of noise/chemical pollution such as would be experienced by the SEND school by the M4. If this Executive meeting, approves the schools, is there still a need to locate a SEND school by the M4 or can these two schools be adjusted in size to get an economy of scale and benefit the children through not exposing them to a locked environment or excessive levels of noise and pollution?
Supplementary answer:
The first point to note is that the process for bidding for schools, does not assure that these schools will arrive. I would like to be optimistic and hope that we will at least get one school from this process. At this point we haven’t yet put in a full bid. I would prefer that we do not get ahead of ourselves.
My second point, there are lots of considerations around the size of schools and the type of SEND provision that a school will cater for. Having larger schools doesn’t necessarily mean that you cater for the right needs arising from our children with SEND. The SEND school that is currently under construction is due to open next September, funded by the DfE. The DfE was satisfied that this was the right site for it. It has passed all Planning processes, whilst I know there are people who are uncomfortable because of the location, the school is funded by the DfE and run by the Maiden Erlegh Trust and not under the control of the Council.