Agenda and minutes

To note the attendance at this meeting of any duly appointed Reserve Members.

Reserve Members may attend meetings:-

(i)                 to take the place of an ordinary Member for whom they are a reserve;

(ii)               where the ordinary Member will be absent for the whole of the meeting; and

(iii)             the meeting notes at the start of the meeting at the item ‘Reserves’ that the Reserve Member is or will be attending as a reserve;

(iv)              if a Reserve Member whose intention to attend has been noted arrives after the commencement of the meeting, then that Reserve Member can only act as a Member from the start of the next item of business on the agenda after his/her arrival.

RESOLVED:  To note the attendance at this meeting of the following duly appointed Reserve Member:-

To receive declarations of disclosable pecuniary or non pecuniary interests, arising from business to be transacted at this meeting, from:

(a)               all Members of the Panel;

(b)               all other Members present.

RESOLVED:  To note that the following interests were declared:

Agenda Item 8 – Admission to County Schools

Councillor Mrs Camilla Bath declared a non-pecuniary interest in that she was a governor at Whitchurch First School, St George’s Catholic Primary School and Harrow High School.

Councillor Mrinal Choudhury declared a non-pecuniary interest in that he was a governor of Elmgrove Primary School and Nursery, and a Member of the Planning Committee, which was considering planning applications for expansion of some schools.

Councillor Asad Omar declared a non-pecuniary interest in that he was a governor of Nower Hill High School.

They would remain in the room for the consideration of any cases relating to that school.

Ms G Caroli, Headteacher of Grimsdyke School, declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in relation to cases P356, P358, P359, P362, P366, and P369.  She would leave the room during the consideration of these cases, as they related to Grimsdyke School.

That the minutes of the meeting held on 6 March 2013 be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 6 March 2013, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

To receive questions (if any) from local residents or organisations under the provisions of Executive Procedure Rule 51 (Part 4D of the Constitution).

RESOLVED:  To note that no public questions were put, or petitions or deputations received at this meeting.

To resolve that the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business, on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of confidential information in breach of an obligation of confidence, or of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972:

RESOLVED:  That, in accordance with Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item for the reason set out below:

Report of the Corporate Director of Children and Families.

In accordance with the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985, cases P344 - P376 were admitted late to the agenda to allow the Panel to allocate an appropriate place to the applicants. In addition, a number of letters from various schools were circulated to the Panel for their consideration prior to making any decisions.  A grid setting out the pupil numbers and the distances to schools was also circulated.

On 20 March 2013,there were 28 children for whom admissions staff could make no reasonable offer of a school place, having noted that an additional 6 children had, since the issue of the agenda and supplemental agendas, been allocated a school place.  The School Placement Panel was requested to recommend to the Corporate Director of Children and Families to authorise the admission of these pupils to a school where no places existed in the relevant year group.

Following consideration of the cases, a Councillor queried a recent government announcement for the need for 88,000 additional extra school places in the country for children from September 2013.  She asked how Harrow was affected and how the Council would address such an expansion, as it would be remiss for the Panel not to ask for such information, including the issue of available teaching staff.  The Member agreed to draft a letter for the Chairman’s approval to be sent to the Corporate Director of Children and Families and the Chief Executive.

Resolved to RECOMMEND:  (to the Corporate Director of Children and Families)

That offers of admission to schools be made as follows: