As you may have noticed on the gates, Leathersellers have finally put up their proposal to knock down Lewisham Bridge Primary School and replace it with a new all-age 3-16 school. It will be a Foundation School.
This is bad news for children and staff! We only have until July 16th to tell the council to think again!
Who are Leathersellers?
Leathersellers are a company based in the City. They are unaccountable to the staff, parents and children, which means that we cannot call them to account over how they decide to run our children’s education.
What is a Foundation School?
It is not like a community school run by the Local Authority. Governors have the right to decide admissions, they are the direct employer of staff, they own the land and the buildings.
How does this affect me, my child or my job?
Admissions:
Leathersllers say that they will be part of Lewisham’s admissions policy – based on bands 1A to 3 – but can we trust they will keep to their word?
They have already decided that they don’t want the Travellers Education Service at the new school. They don’t want a Special Needs Unit at the new school. They are more used to teaching high-achievers. What wil happen to children who don’t fit into that category?
They have promised parents in the north of the borough that the school is for them while they also promise that “the pupils of the school will live within walking distance of the school”. So who excatly is the new school for?
Employment:
If you’re a member of staff, your employer will no longer be the Local Authority but the Federation Governing Body. This will undermine collective trade unionism.
Governance:
Currently Lewisham Bridge Primary School has FOUR parent governors elected by the parents at the school. The new school will just have ONE. How much notice will Leathersllers really take of parents; views? They’ve already decided on the name of the school without consulting us.
Public Assets:
Leathersellers will own the land – we won’t get that back! They don’t even have to pay for the new school! Why aren’t Lewisham Council building and running the school themselves? Why are they giving away our assets?
Ignoring parents concerns
Most parents responding to the Leathersellers’ first consultation were AGAINST their plan. They still haven’t provided answers to many other objections that were raised:
- Why can’t the school remain as a community school?
- Where is the evidence that the all-age design will provide a safe and successful school?
- Where are the site plans proving that the site is big enough for both play and study?
- What will happen to all the staff who have been teaching our kids?
- Federations, Trusts, academies – all new words for privatisation!
- The proposal that Leathesellers run the new school at Lewisham Bridge is part of Lewisham Council’s plans to privatise education in Lewisham.
- Why should Lewisham be dominated by Haberdashers, Leathersellers and Goldsmiths?
DEFEND EDUCATION SAY:
START LISTENING TO PARENTS
DON’T GIVE AWAY OUR SCHOOL
REJECT THE LEATHERSELLERS PROPOSAL
KEEP THE NEW SCHOOL AS A LOCAL AUTHORITY COMMUNITY SCHOOL
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
If you don’t want our school to be given away to an unaccountable firm, send you letter of protest to
Chris Threlfall
Head of Educational Development
Children and Young People’s Directorate
London Borough of Lewisham
3rd Floor
Laurence House
London
SE6 4RU
Defend Education in Lewisham 
June 25, 2008 at 9:04 pm
[…] HANDS OFF LEWISHAM BRIDGE PRIMARY SCHOOL! Send in your letters of Leathersellers have finally put up their proposal to knock down Lewisham Bridge Primary School and replace it with a new all-age 3-16 school. […]
October 3, 2008 at 7:19 pm
COME ON I AM IN LEWISHAM BRIDGE PRIMRAY SCHOOL AND I WANT IT SO SATY IM IN YR 5 AND AND I DONT WANT TEENS COMING OVER AND BULLYING ALL OF US SO THERE LEAVE OUR SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!
April 2, 2009 at 3:23 pm
my son is nearly 4 and attends the nursery at lewisham bridge, i was very impressed by the school and its local to me and the staff are friendly. i was NEVER told about NO PLANNING PERMISSION, i feel uncomfortable with the school coaches taking children so young with only 2 supervising adults. i also am not happy at the fact that there is no divide between primary and secondary age children. besides the fact the Children (is what matters here) do not want or think the move will help.
April 26, 2009 at 2:20 pm
The time is now to make a strong protest peacefully.
All Councillors (especially the school governors) should be approached and given to uderstand the problems and difficulties the change to a foundation school will bring.
The feeder sec schools hopefully will add their support
April 28, 2009 at 12:23 pm
Although the protesters have a point to air, it is sad that they have put very little thought into their protest and that they are going about it in a distainful manner.
Firstly, a protest is suppose to send a message to the persons in power, the decision makers. It is suppose to facilitate discussion between both parites and to give the people a voice as well as inclusion. Unfortunately, this is not what is taking place here.
What purpose does sitting on a school roof in an uninhabited school serve other than to give the protesters a central place to
meet? Surely protesting outside the town hall or protesting outside places that the decision makers actually frequent would make more sense. Whilst the protesters sit on a school roof at the mercy of the delightful English weather, the decision makers carry on with their day, tucking into three course dinners completely undetered by the protesters action and because of this, the protestors are given no real relevant attention at all.
Next on the list is screamning and verbally abusing the teachers as well as encouraging the parents to do so. What does this achieve? The teachers are not the decision makers. They have no influence in the decisions made by the council.
They simply turn up for work to do a job. They only care about teaching the children, so why make attempts to distrupt the children being collected and dropped off? Why shout and verbally abuse them? These teachers are hard working
individuals who are in the middle of something they have not created. They have to turn up to work, they have to do their job and they cannot influence what is taking place here. In fact, they probably don’t care where they teach as long as they can teach. This only goes to show that the protestors haven’t really thought for one moment, who their target
audience for the protest, should really be? Frankly, venting
frustration at innocent parties such as the teachers is
nothing but misguided and cruel.
Lastly, withdrawing your children from school as a form of protest. Again, what possible purpose does this serve? None other than your child losing out on their right to be educated. It just doesn’t sound like the actions of a good parent. If, as an adult, you wish to protest, fine, but why withdraw your child’s eduation when their safety is not in question?
I am all for the people standing up and having a voice but protest has to make an impact to the people who can make a decision that possibly changes the situation. Protesting the right way, at the right location, to the right people can make a difference and it is the stark difference between a protest and a unthoughtful misguided mob.
April 29, 2009 at 9:10 pm
dont break down lewisham bridge or els!!!!!