Durham Johnston Admissions Criteria
A paper is going to the County Council Cabinet on 20 March proposing to change the admissions criteria for Durham Johnston.
Many local residents will remember the crisis around 12 years ago when children being bussed in from Bowburn and Brandon were taking priority over those living a few hundred metres from the school.
After a concerted campaign by parents, supported by me, the then Education Committee agreed to change the criteria to give priority to “pupils for whom Durham Johnston is the nearest suitable school”. Distance was measured from the closer of the Whinney Hill and Crossgate Moor sites.
This sorted the problem with most children from the villages still getting a place, but as the school is moving to a single site next year (another successful campaign) things had to be reviewed as the “closest school” for Shincliffe, for example, will no longer be Durham Johnston.
The proposal on 20 March is to revert to the previous regime where bussing arrangements take priority over sibling links with distance last.
The argument is that the criteria for all schools in the County should be the same, but I am really concerned that the problems that we had 12 years ago might return.
There is another issue to do with sibling links.
Durham Johnston has a fantastic sixth form with recent results placing it in the top handful (literally) of truly comprehensive schools in the whole of the England. Many students choose to come to its sixth form from other schools, often from a considerable distance.
The sibling link criterion means that a family living 25 miles away can get a child into the sixth form and then claim priority over a local family for a second child at age 11.
This did indeed happen a few times in the past and the governors asked for this loophole to be closed - and it was. Now it is going to be re-opened again.
Maybe falling numbers of children will mean that the risks to local families of not getting a place are very low, but we are told that the birthrate is now rising again, so the risks will also rise.
There are questions that need to be answered here. How over-subscribed is Durham Johnston? What are the risks? How have they been assessed?
Perhaps the main question is - why does it have to be “one size fits all”?
3 Comments
have your say
I have just received a message regarding the new admissions criteria for Durham Johnston school from my daughter’s school (St Margaret’s). I am more than a little concerned that my two daughters may not gain a place when they reach year 7 (we live in Neville’s Cross). Is there anything we can do about this issue or is it a ‘done deal’?
Hi Clare. I spoke with one of the St Margaret’s Governors at length about this last night. She is hoping to arrange a meeting shortly to try to clarify the situation.
Briefly, with DJ going on to a single site next April, the County has reverted to the pre-mid 1990s criteria which give preference for children for whom there is associated transport.
Under considerable pressure from parents in Shincliffe (and the local Labour councillor standing for that area standing for re-election on 1 May!) they also agreed to ‘associate’ transport to DJ for Shincliffe, Bowburn etc.
This then puts those living nearer at a lower priority.
The difference between now and 12 years ago is that there are fewer children around (admissions to Neville’s Cross Primary have reduced markedly since 2000).
My guess is that the numbers will be OK for the next few years, but it is only a guess and the risk is that the pressure will build again.
Dear Nigel, As a governor of the school, and recently elected councillor to reply that “my guess is that numbers will be OK”, was not the confident response from someone who would be in a key position to ask questions regarding the case for change in the admission rules. The council’s own associated transport guidelines make reference to a two mile radius. This would mean children in Langley Moor who live closer than children in the City gaining priority even over sibling links. The associated transport areas require re-visiting, and cannot be taken carte blanche because we have always done that. The Council’s own consultation document in 2005 states in their FAQ’s that the admission criteria will not be changed. The economic growth and house price rises also make the use of outdated social measures not a fair approach if the new criteria is to ensure equal access without disadvantaging social groups. Even a look at the council’s own forecast tables for primary schools shows that St Margaret’s is one of the few with predicted rises in numbers. So to say that you guess it will be OK is not good enough when our childrens welfare is at stake. This is an ill thought out piece of political manouvering with our childrens welfare as the football, and I for one do not expect local polititians to guess when it comes to childrens welfare!!!!!!