News

.... a weekly column from Dover and Deal MP Gwyn Prosser

19 April 2007

On Monday I attended the official opening of the White Cliffs Primary College for the Arts. White Cliffs has entered into federation with the highly successful Astor College for the Arts under the hands-on leadership of the Principal , Chris Russell. And if you are still trying to figure out where this new primary college is situated – it’s on St Radigunds Road and we used to call it plain St Rads.

St Radigunds was one of nine primaries in my constituency which Kent County Council wanted to close and despite a very spirited local campaign of opposition, Tory Councillors voted to close the school.

The opposition continued, we challenged KCC to come up with alternative schools which did not entail long journeys and busy roads and eventually common sense prevailed, the school was saved and a rescue plan was put in place. The plan was to change the ethos of the school, inject a liberal dose of vitality and provide strong and focused leadership to improve standards – and how they needed improving. For instance, in the most recent year-on-year comparison of aggregated results St Rads scored just 67 compared with an all Kent average of 232 and despite the best efforts of everyone there seemed little prospect of improvement without external help.

That help came from KCC who agreed to allow a federation with Astor and from Chris Russell who accepted the challenge to take St Rads under his wing, re-brand it as a college for the arts and provide the pupils with a new sense of pride in their new school. This was already showing through at the opening, in bright eyed faces of the children who sang The White Cliffs of Dover and proudly showed off their smart new uniforms.

The journey from failing school to aspiring college has only just began and I know that the first leg of that journey has been bruising for some and bothersome for many but the main stakeholders are the pupils and the pay-off will be those children’s futures and I’m already convinced that the firm but fair leadership being exercised by the new regime will be rewarded with higher aspirations and fast improving performance.

I was particularly encouraged to see so many parents attend the opening ceremony. Parental support is a vital ingredient of any school’s success and the presence of so many Mums and Dads testified to the willingness of the community to embrace change for the benefit of their children – they are to be commended.

It’s regrettable that the good people of St Radigunds had to suffer the trauma of facing the total closure of their school before wiser counsel prevailed and the federated option was allowed because some of us strongly advocated this course in our written submissions to KCC. However, having shared such a happy and enjoyable time at the opening of The White Cliffs Primary College for the Arts, I’m content to let sleeping dogs lie and say - ‘better late than never’