Northamptonshire needs "a balanced mix of schools", warn Lib Dems in education policy proposals

8.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Thu 22nd May 2008

New schools in Northamptonshire must be built in a planned and balanced way, Liberal Democrats have insisted.

Liberal Democrats have put forward proposals for Northamptonshire County Council to publish a new policy on secondary education for Northamptonshire, to achieve a balanced mix of different types of schools that provide a proper choice for parents.

Speaking at the Annual Meeting of Northants County Council, Lib Dem leader Cllr Brian Hoare said, "the Council needs to have clear education policy framework for all areas of the County. This must take into account the growth of housing planned, and to give parents a choice of types of schools for their children. At the moment there is no published policy as to where new Academy Schools should be placed, where new Faith Schools should be sited, and all decisions seem to be made in a reactive rather than a planned way."

"What we do not want is a cluster of Academies in some parts of the county and not in others. A balanced mix of types of schools across the county would also go towards giving parents more of a real choice for their children."

Cllr Richard Church added: "The policy should also take into account the fact that a number of secondary schools in the county are under performing and need restructuring, and whilst Academies are the current government's answer to falling standards, they are only part of the solution and not the complete answer."

ENDS