Agenda item - Public Involvement

To consider the following matters raised by members of the public:

(a)     Petitions: to receive any petitions presented to the full council or at the meeting itself;

(b)     Written Questions: to receive any questions submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 11 September 2017;

(c)     Deputations: to receive any deputations submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 11 September 2017.

23 (a) Petitions

23.1There were none

23 (b)  Written Questions

23.2    Mr Boyle asked the following question:

Under the proposed changes to the catchment areas, children in the area north of Elm Grove with no sibling link will be offered the choice of Longhill and the new school. Can the council confirm that the new school will actually be an available option for those children in 2019?

23.3    The Chair gave the following response:

Thank you for your question.

On the 29 June the Council released a joint statement with the University of Brighton Academies Trust confirming that the Brighton General Hospital site is the preferred site for The Brighton and Hove Academy. The council continues to be in dialogue with the Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust about how their plans for the site can include the new secondary school building. The Brighton and Hove Academy is in the pre-opening stage and it is a decision for the Education Skills Funding Agency and not the Council about when their conditions for opening have been satisfied.  We continue to make every effort to ensure that we provide whatever assistance is needed to ensure those conditions are met.

23.4    Mr Boyle asked the following supplementary:

Can the Council guarantee that the new secondary school would be included in any admission arrangements for September 2019.

23.5    The Chair gave the following response:

The Council will know in the summer of 2018 whether the news school will be able to open in 2019. The Authority has done all it can to push for the opening of a new secondary school but it has no control over the process. The Council would keep everyone informed of developments.

23 (c)  Written Questions

23.6    There were none.

23 (d)  Deputations

23.7    There were none.