Thursday, 16 May 2013

Hampshire County Council is encouraging parents to swap their car for a ticket to stride on the school run instead, with their children, during Walk to School Week (20- 24 May).

Over ninety thousand Hampshire-based school children have signed up to take part in Walk to School Week 2013, encouraging parents and children to take the opportunity to try walking to school and putting into practice good pedestrian road safety behaviour. All children taking part in Walk to School Week will receive a log book, certificate and stickers.

Walk to School Week is the initiative of national charity 'Living Streets'. According to the charity, by walking to school, parents say they find the journey to school less stressful, their petrol bill goes down, their children perform better at school and both they and their children feel healthier and fitter.

The aim of the initiative is to encourage as many school children and their families across the county to give walking a go during Walk to School Week. It is a more active way to start the day and can help improve concentration in the classroom. It can also be beneficial in helping children develop life long road safety skills and their sense of independence, as well as being fun.

Number of children participating by district.

East Hants 7,860
Basingstoke 13,170
Eastleigh 9,060
Fareham 8,435
Gosport 5,995
Hart 6,860
Havant 7,705
New Forest 9,980
Rushmoor 6,835
Test Valley 8,265
Winchester 6,455

Total 90,620

• Walk to School Week

Tuesday, 16 April 2013

John Coughlan, Hampshire County Council's Director of Children's Services, said: "The County Council's admission team has handled more than 14,000 applications for children starting primary school in September and parents have been notified of places offered to their children today, April 16. 97.76% of children have been given a place at one of their preferred schools, slightly higher than last year, including a small increase in the number getting their first choice.

"If parents applied by the deadline of midnight, on the 15 January, via our online application system, they will have been notified online accordingly, via email. In the cases where email addresses appeared to be incorrect, or where paper applications were received, hard copies of the offer letter will be sent instead, by first class post today. If parents are happy with the place offered to their child, there is no need for them to confirm acceptance but they are expected to contact the school with evidence of address and their child's date of birth over the coming weeks.

"Parents can appeal in respect of any school for which they have received a refusal. If parents have been allocated a place at a school other than one they hoped for, we advise that they hold onto that place for the time being, pending the outcome of offers being made to children on waiting lists or any appeal process. Their child's name will automatically be added to the waiting list of any higher preference Hampshire school named.

"If parents no longer need the school place secured for their child, they are asked to notify us, as soon as possible, so that the place can be re-allocated."

• Further information about what happens next

Wednesday, 20 March 2013

Friends of the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra have received a boost to help them to replace a full set of concert dresses for their public performances.

At his Decision Day on 14 March, Hampshire County Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber awarded the organisation £5,265 towards the total cost of £10,000 to replace the 20 year old garments. The funding will contribute towards purchasing fabric and dressmaking.

Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber said: "This organisation provides an opportunity for young people to develop and present their talent across the County, providing musical pleasure to large audiences. I am happy to be able to assist them in updating their concert wardrobe."

The Friends of the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra aims to assist in the musical education of students at schools and colleges in Hampshire by providing financial support to the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra, Hampshire County Youth Chamber Orchestra, and Hampshire County Youth String Orchestra.

In particular, the Friends contribute to the cost of residential training courses and orchestra overseas tours to reduce parental contributions and ensure that opportunities are open to all. The Friends also help by giving grants to the orchestras for instruments, commissioning of new works, soloists and workshops.

• Friends of the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra

Tuesday, 19 March 2013

More than £30million is being invested by Hampshire County Council in the Havant area to improve schools, and support older people to live independently for longer, according to reports presented to Members of Hampshire's Buildings, Land and Procurement Panel (BLAPP).

At their latest meeting (19 March), Councillors were informed of progress on a number of key projects. These included the official opening event last month of the enhanced learning environment and improved facilities for students, staff and the wider community at Havant Academy following £9million of refurbishments by the Council's in-house Property Services team.

Updates were also provided on a £20million project currently underway to transform, replace and refurbish buildings at Park Community School to provide a 21st century learning environment for the school's 900 pupils. Design plans were also unveiled at the meeting, for the provision of improved sports facilities at Warblington Community School where a synthetic turf pitch and floodlighting is due to be delivered to benefit pupils and the wider community, at a cost of around £1.03million.

Separate plans for the development of a health and wellbeing campus on the former Oak Park hospital site in Havant were also outlined to BLAPP Members. The scheme will see the creation of 50 extra care homes to provide older people with a secure place to live but with care and support on hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Extra Care housing also has the benefit of allowing couples, who may have very different care needs, to stay together. The proposals also include plans to create a 30 bed nursing home.

County Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber, said: "In spite of very difficult ongoing financial challenges across the public sector, this overall package of improvements and redevelopment in the Havant area represents a significant investment by the County Council in the long term future of the area. These new school developments will not only give pupils the best possible start in life with the provision of outstanding learning facilities, but the local community is also set to benefit.

"Meanwhile, the development of a Wellbeing Campus in Havant represents our long term vision and commitment to new ways of delivering social care to meet the future demands on our services from an increasingly elderly and frail population. Through this pioneering scheme, we aim to provide greater choices and independence so that older people continue to be well-supported in their local communities."

Recommendations from the BLAPP meeting will go before the County Council's Executive Member for Policy and Resources for approval on 18 April 2013.

• Buildings, Land and Procurement Panel

Monday, 18 March 2013

Lively and innovative geology sessions are coming to Hampshire museums, with activities including a collector's box of geological curiosities, story-telling activities, a geochemical kit, a beginners guide to fossils and a stunning textile geological map of the area.

The activities have been made possible with funding provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund, which awarded £48,000 to a partnership of museums across several counties in the South East region, collectively known as Rockband.

Hampshire's interactive map, which has lots of intriguing pockets with fossils to explore and discover, was produced by textile artist Jenny Langley and shows many local geological features, including St Catherine's Hill, Selborne Hanger and the 'Sand Boils' at Bishops Waltham.

The new activities will be suitable for audiences of all ages and backgrounds, including audiences with learning disabilities and those who are partially sighted. Schools will soon be getting stuck in at special educational sessions, and members of the public will have a number of opportunities to try out the materials.

Check out the Hantsweb What's on listings to see further sessions as they are arranged, or contact the Museums and Arts Service.

• Willis Museum, Basingstoke, 10 April

Tuesday, 12 March 2013

Hampshire County Council's in-house design team has received further national recognition for work to design and develop Endeavour Primary School in Andover.

The school has received a Civic Trust Commendation Award (9 March) which recognises the best in the built environment, from architecture to planning, townscape to infrastructure. The Awards also recognise the public realm in its wider context, and the positive impact that buildings have on the people who use them and the local community.

The award is the second design accolade received by Endeavour Primary School, which has previously won the RIBA Downland Award 2012, following its completion last year. Design and project management was carried out by Hampshire County Council's Property Services, and construction by Mansell Construction Services Ltd.

This new primary school for 420 pupils had a brief to provide flexible accommodation that can adapt to the changing learning styles of the future and be as accessible as possible for the wider community. A holistic approach to the design links architecture, interior and landscape, creating a pleasant and inspiring environment conducive to learning and wellbeing. The school has simple pitched roofed buildings arranged around a central courtyard, with the main hall on the street front, all linked by glazed cloisters. Each class has access directly to excellent sheltered external play areas, as well as generous facilities for outdoor learning.

In addition to receiving this latest design accolade, Endeavour Primary School was also recently the subject of a Royal visit, when in October 2012, Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal was welcomed to plant the first tree in Hampshire's nearby Diamond Jubilee Woodlands, developed in celebration of Her Majesty The Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Ken Thornber, said: "To receive further national acclaim for delivering inspirational, practical and resilient design is a very positive reflection on the skill, expertise and innovation of our in-house design team and I congratulate them for their outstanding efforts.

"The County Council prides itself on providing children with the best possible start in life, and this award-winning school offers pupils, teachers and staff an outstanding learning environment in which they can be proud."

• Endeavour Primary School website

Friday, 01 March 2013

Hampshire County Council's schools admissions service has been able to offer 99.5% of parents a place for their child at a school of their choice - with 96.2% getting their first preferred school, around 10% higher than the national averages released by the Department for Education last year.

The numbers getting a school of their choice is a record high. In total the service handled just over 13,000 on-time applications for Hampshire secondary schools and has notified parents of the outcome today.

Commenting Councillor Roy Perry, Hampshire County Council's Executive Lead Member for Children's Services, said: "I am delighted to see that an overwhelming majority of Hampshire children have been able to get into a secondary school of their choice this year - 99.5% is a very high success rate indeed when compared with rates elsewhere and is an improvement on last year's figure.

"I know that for the small number of children, some 60 out of more than 12,000 who applied, there will be disappointment not to have secured a place at one of their choices but that is because they applied to schools with exceptionally high demand. It is a mark of the high quality teaching in Hampshire schools that some have attracted more applicants than there are places but it really is only a very small proportion of the total number of applicants who have been unable to get a place at one of their preferred schools. The vast majority will be attending a school of their choice , and for over ninety six percent of families that is their first choice.

"No Hampshire child is without a place and those who did not secure a place at one of their chosen schools will be allocated a place at the nearest school with places available. Parents who have been unable to secure a place at their chosen school do of course have the right of appeal and they can put their child's name down on the school's waiting list. Places do become available as some parents change their mind or families move home and no longer need the place they had applied for.

The admissions team is now handling the primary school applications with offers due to go out on 16 April. In total the department will have dealt with 33,000 applications this year for children who are either starting primary or secondary school or transferring from infant to junior school.

In common with many areas around the country Hampshire has experienced heavy demand for primary school places. This is due to rising numbers births and more crucially increased numbers of families choosing to move into the county, in part attracted by the high quality schools, with more than 75% of children attending a primary school ranked good or outstanding by Ofsted.

In response to the increased demand for primary school places the County Council has committed more than £160m to providing an additional 8,000 primary school places in Hampshire.

• Schools in Hampshire - information and support services

Sunday 20 January 2013

Hampshire County Council will consider proposals next week which could see a second primary school established in Whiteley.

The school being proposed by the Portsmouth and Winchester Dioceses is a one-form entry Church of England Voluntary Aided primary school. Land owned by the County Council has been identified as a possible temporary site for it.

The plan by Winchester City Council to bring forward the north Whiteley development area for housing over the next few years has prompted the proposal by the Dioceses to establish the school. The school could open on its temporary site, ready to take its first pupils in September this year.

The Dioceses have undertaken a public consultation on the proposals and they have received widespread community support, as it will enable children living in the area to go to school within the development rather than having to travel to local schools nearby.

The proposal is to locate the school on a temporary site adjacent to Lady Betty's Drive and Leafy Lane with a view to it re-locating to permanent, purpose-built buildings within the north Whiteley development once that land has been released by developers. The intention is that it would then become a three-form entry school when housing development dictates the need for more places.

Councillor Roy Perry, Hampshire County Council's Executive Lead Member for Children's Services who will consider the proposals at his decision day on Wednesday 23 January, said: "The County Council recognised the need for additional places to meet demand in Whiteley several years ago and we were very disappointed that the site that was proposed then, could not be secured. I completely understand parents' desire to have their children attend schools close to where they live so I look forward to considering these proposals which will provide additional school places in Whiteley to meet the demand for places now, and in the future. I know the proposals have the full support of local Council members, Councillor Sean Woodard and Councillor Patricia Stallard."

Councillor Ken Thornber, Leader of Hampshire County Council will be asked the following day (24 January), to approve the release of the land for the school, and the procurement processes for the buildings. They will cost just over £2m and will be funded by the County Council. He added: "The County Council first looked at building another primary school in Whiteley in 2006 but unfortunately we were not able to secure a suitable site on which to build a permanent school, which satisfied all the requirements at the time. This proposal could be the best approach in enabling the provision of much-needed primary school places on a temporary basis until north Whiteley is developed."

• Proposed New Voluntary Aided Primary School in Whiteley

Sunday, 16 Dec 2012

Girl Guides in Lymington will benefit from a new minibus thanks to a financial boost from Hampshire County Council.

At his Decision Day (13 December 2012), Leader of Hampshire County Council, Councillor Ken Thornber, awarded funding of £5,000 to Girlguiding Lymington towards the replacement of their current bus.

Girlguiding Lymington provides young girls in the local area with support from volunteer leaders, enabling them to increase their self esteem, learn new skills, and gain new experiences and friendships.

Councillor Thornber, said: "Girlguiding Lymington supports over a hundred five to 18-year-old girls, and provides them with opportunities to take part in a variety of community based volunteer projects. We are pleased to support their efforts within Hampshire and also help them to develop important skills as they prepare for adulthood."

• Girl Guiding
• Hampshire County Council Grants

Friday, 07 December 2012

Hampshire County Council has published its overarching framework and analysis for school places for the next four years.

At his decision day on 6 December Councillor Perry approved a framework and process for the planning of, and the consultation on, the provision of school places in Hampshire.

Hampshire in keeping with the national picture has experienced a significant rise in births over recent years which, together with housing development and in-migration to parts of the county, has increased the pressure on primary school places.

The framework, which has been developed following consultation with district and borough councils, national park authorities, diocesan authorities, head teachers and Governing bodies, forecasts future trends in predicted pupil numbers based on past and present uptake of places and birth and housing data. It also gives an indication of the need for additional future places and how these may be provided.

The document is intended to be a dynamic, living document which will be updated and developed according to information from Hampshire's thirteen planning authorities, all of which are at various stages in producing their Local Plans. It will be used to inform the development of more detailed district level plans as and when the need arises. This detailed planning for specific areas of the county will then be the subject of specific local consultations.

Commenting Councillor Perry said: "The County Council has a duty to ensure the provision of sufficient school places in such a way that raises standards, manages rising and declining pupil numbers and creates a high quality, diverse community of schools.

"I do appreciate how important it is to parents to be able to secure a place for their child at their local schools. The County Council has a planned investment programme of £161m over the next three years, subject to the receipt of future government grants and developers' contributions. A range of factors impacts upon the demand for school places such as birth rates, housing development, movement of families in and out of the county and parental preference.

"We seek to meet parental preferences wherever possible, and we have a very good record of success in this respect, much better than most authorities, but it must be remembered pupil forecasts are primarily concerned with the total number of school places available in an area. While over subscription of certain schools can give the impression that there is a shortage of school places that is not necessarily the case. It is the number of spare places in an area that we have to balance against the number of children seeking to start school that is the principal factor which we seek to predict and respond to. This is a continual process enabling us to develop detailed local plans for provision as and when needed."

• School Places : framework and analysis 2012-16

Wednesday, 31 October 2012

Building designs for a proposed school expansion in north Hampshire have been given the go ahead, in plans that could see a total of £10million invested by Hampshire County Council to increase primary school places in the Fleet area.

Designs for the £4.5million proposed expansion of Tavistock Community Infant and All Saints C of E (VA) Junior Schools in Fleet have been agreed by County Council Leader, Councillor Ken Thornber. This lays the groundwork while feedback is collected in a public consultation on the proposed expansion plans.

Based on the consultation results, a final decision will then be made in December by the Executive Lead Member for Children's Services, Councillor Roy Perry.

If given the go ahead, it would see Tavistock Community Infant School in Broadacres, expanded to create a three form entry school to provide an extra 90 places and cater for a total of 270 pupils. Meanwhile an additional 120 places could also be created at All Saints CofE Junior School, off Leawood Road, so that it could accommodate a total of 480 pupils. It is being proposed that three additional reception classrooms, a library, IT resource area and play areas would be provided at Tavistock. At All Saints, improvements could include a four-classroom extension, extended hall, and reconfigured playground areas.

Only with approval in December could work expect to start on site during Summer 2013, and complete during Summer 2014, so that pupils could begin to use the new facilities at the start of the Autumn Term.

Earlier this year, £5.5million design plans were also approved for the Fleet area. The plans will see Tweseldown Infant School relocated and expanded into the new housing development off Sandy Lane, on the former Queen Elizabeth Barracks site, to create a 270 place three form entry infant school.

Church Crookham Junior School will also be extended into the vacated and refurbished Tweseldown Infant School building, to cater for 480 pupils. This will provide additional pupil places needed at both schools following the construction of a new housing development nearby.

By expanding existing schools in the area, it is more favourable than building a brand new school, as the existing schools are already located close to the new housing developments at Edenbrook and Queen Elizabeth Barracks. These are successful, well-established and popular schools, and their expansion close to the new developments would help to bring the new and expanding community together, as well as allow pupils to walk and cycle to school.

Councillor Thornber, said: "If agreed in December, these latest proposals for Fleet represent significant investment by the County Council, and reflect our commitment to providing children in the area with the best possible start in life.

"In line with the national picture, Hampshire is experiencing an increase in demand for primary school places and this is down to a number of factors including; a rising number of births, housing development and increasing numbers of families moving into the county. Some parts of Hampshire are more affected than others, and these proposals for Fleet form part of wider plans to create additional school places in a large number of communities including Farnborough, Bramley, Overton, Winchester, Eastleigh, Basingstoke, Emsworth and Andover."

Elsewhere, detailed feasibility work is also underway with Calthorpe Park School in Fleet to ensure the necessary secondary school places are available to meet the predicted rise in demand.

• Earlier this year, £5.5million design plans were also approved for the Fleet area