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Struggling school is given hope by parents (From The Argus)
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Struggling St Aubyns school is given hope by parents in Rottingdean
12:50pm Tuesday 26th February 2013 in News By Peter Truman
St Aubyns in Rottingdean
A group of parents hope they can save a school by taking it over.
St Aubyns in Rottingdean announced last week it was to close due to falling pupil numbers.
The school also blamed not being able to find a suitable replacement for the outgoing headteacher Simon Hitchings.
The announcement led to an immediate rallying call from concerned parents and ex-pupils.
They set up a Facebook group called Friends of St Aubyns and held a meeting over the weekend with staff and parents, as well as Adrian Richardson who is director of the Cothill Educational Trust, which runs the school.
A core group of parents decided to develop alternative proposals, including new initiatives for the school’s structure and funding, therefore securing the future of the school.
The non-selective school employs 67 staff and currently has a total of 155 children attending from three years to 13 years.
Financial issues
The Cothill Educational Trust and its accountants are making available the school’s financial and business records.
The trust took over the running of the school in March 2012, but when the school submitted its report to the charity’s commission in June it became clear there might be financial problems.
The report said: “The financial health of the charity remains delicate as all income is expended on the provision of education each year.
“The charity does not have the benefit of any endowed or restricted funds and therefore all bursary and scholarship awards are made from income received in the year.
'Prime location'
“St Aubyns is located in a prime location in East Sussex and owns all of the land and buildings.
“The carrying value of the land and buildings on the Balance Sheet is significantly understated.
“The association of St Aubyns with the Cothill Educational Trust will provide greater financial stability and promises to secure the future of education at St Aubyns.
”That promise fell through and the school is now on the brink. But during Saturday’s meeting, Mr Richardson said the Cothill Educational Trust had not yet taken a decision to close St Aubyns because we can't possibly make a decision like that without meetings such as this”.
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Comments(11)
Pitviper
says...
1:41pm Tue 26 Feb 13
rolivan wrote:They're not all teachers, there are cleaners, cooks, maintenace staff, pastoral care staff and many more!
67 Staff for 155 Pupils.How many can it accommodate.Why are children travelling to Cardinal Newman from Ovingdean when this School is in their backyard?
rolivan
says...
1:49pm Tue 26 Feb 13
Pitviper wrote:You seem to be well informed even if Half are staff that is still 5 pupils for 1 staff Member.
rolivan wrote:They're not all teachers, there are cleaners, cooks, maintenace staff, pastoral care staff and many more!
67 Staff for 155 Pupils.How many can it accommodate.Why are children travelling to Cardinal Newman from Ovingdean when this School is in their backyard?
Saltdean Resident
says...
1:59pm Tue 26 Feb 13
rolivan wrote:This is a public school, in a previous report it stated it can cost up to £5000 a term. Cardinal Newman is a faith school within the state sector and takes catholic children from all over Brighton.
Pitviper wrote:You seem to be well informed even if Half are staff that is still 5 pupils for 1 staff Member.
rolivan wrote:They're not all teachers, there are cleaners, cooks, maintenace staff, pastoral care staff and many more!
67 Staff for 155 Pupils.How many can it accommodate.Why are children travelling to Cardinal Newman from Ovingdean when this School is in their backyard?
rolivan
says...
2:30pm Tue 26 Feb 13
Saltdean Resident wrote:Our Daughter goes to a Catholic Private School here in France. It is not allowed to stop non Catholics from attending Catholic Schools here.Also the fees are approx £85 a month which includes a 4 course lunch.Why is it so expensive for private Education in England.They are all set up as so called Charitable Organisations.
rolivan wrote:This is a public school, in a previous report it stated it can cost up to £5000 a term. Cardinal Newman is a faith school within the state sector and takes catholic children from all over Brighton.
Pitviper wrote:You seem to be well informed even if Half are staff that is still 5 pupils for 1 staff Member.
rolivan wrote:They're not all teachers, there are cleaners, cooks, maintenace staff, pastoral care staff and many more!
67 Staff for 155 Pupils.How many can it accommodate.Why are children travelling to Cardinal Newman from Ovingdean when this School is in their backyard?
Surely not!
says...
3:07pm Tue 26 Feb 13
rolivan
says...
4:07pm Tue 26 Feb 13
Sea breeze
says...
8:15pm Tue 26 Feb 13
mcdbrighton
says...
10:35pm Tue 26 Feb 13
It is also not yet clear that the business of "StAubyns" was doing "very badly". This is all being looked into, as the article explains.
Closure is not "inevitable", at present it simply remains undecided.
TrueBlue13
says...
10:41pm Tue 26 Feb 13
Sea breeze wrote:When the CET took over the school a year ago there appears to have been no mention of successfully running St Aubyns school as a business.
Really sad that any business closes and people lose jobs. This business was doing very badly, the result was inevitable.
At that time CET like many others saw great potential and opportunity at St Aubyns but for whatever reason they have failed to realise it. What we are now seeing is a very positive response from the parent group who are bringing a vast array of their skills and expertise together, to turn this horrible situation around. Pretty impressive given the 48hrs notice they were given. Their success may well be critical to many businesses in and around Rottingdean who are already struggling in these tough economic conditions and who rely on the trade generated by St Aubyns. It will also come as a relief to the already oversubscribed schools in the area who are hoping they will not have to prepare to try and accomodate a further unplanned 150+ children. The community spirit and support for this lovely school has been nothing short of inspiring, indeed humbling and on looking into it a bit deeper I can see why. St Aubyns turns out some amazing children, it has an outstanding academic record with some very famous and eminent past pupils. The school's focus is on individualised learning and they have a pretty impressive track record in preparing children to go on to education in some of the finest educational institutions worldwide. The school is part of the history of Rottingdean, it has a heart and the only thing that is inevitable is that it must and will survive.
TrueBlue13
says...
3:38pm Wed 27 Feb 13
St.AUBYNS LIBRARY
Come and hear the future plans for this great school: They would like as many people as possible to attend.
Parents, Teachers, Prospective Parents, Local people/Businesses,Al
umni
Etc. Please help to spread the word - come on lets help them along
rolivan says...
1:22pm Tue 26 Feb 13