News that Serco is goinbg to be given the push.. and not before time... we were failing in education provsion 10 years ago and still are ... still in the bottom league.. at least we are actually on the map of that league while befroe we risked falling off the map.
I suspect education would have improved whether Serco was there or not.. we could not have fallne any further at the time Serco took over.
A number of questions must be urgently asked
- what penalty clauses are now payable to Serco ? we shall be paying them anyway about £58M over the next two years...
- how incompetent to sign up to another 12 years of Serco when every local authority was getting out of more education control by Serco.. we are the only local authority that Serco runs education for... they seem to have kept their contracts for running prisoners around and have their fingers into so many pies.. they did have a stake in part of the Ofsted inspection service.
- how can we run the education service and keep on board the staff while a now public discussion is taking place on how to end this contract?
- hardly a clear message of security for the many teachers who may well be looking elsewhere for their more secure employment already cross at the prospect of their pensions being seriously tampered with... one reason why many entered this profession knowing they could look forward to a secure and well supported pension.
- I cannot see how this transition can take place in full public view and safeguard teachers and above all ensure that our pupils get the excellent education they deserve and not the dregs of a system in turmoil.
the questions on the future need asking now urgently... Comments gratefully received!!!
regards
Cllr Ian Robertson
Labour Blakenall
and now we need to know how much the Tories under Mike Bird is having to pay to break the Serco contract.... 28th December 2011?
Why didn't you do anything when Building Schools for the Future was axed?
ReplyDeleteWolverhampton got a move on, got the deals done and now they're opening the schools; Sandwell kicked up a righ stink and forced a rethink.
Walsall ... did nothing, not a thing.
The incompetents who didn't get anything done in time weren't sacked or made redundant (they're still there, still useless, still being paid), not one councillor from any of the main parties did anything.
You all sat back and quietly accepted it.
As councillors for possibly the most deprived ward in borough your constituents had most to gain from this but you said nothing and did even less.
There must be a get-out clause in the SERCO contract: 'cancel by either party with appropriate notice period' sort of thing, but who cares?
You should have been shouting and screaming about BSF at the time, and you should still be giving Gove and his chums a hard time becaus eof what Walsall has missed out on.
(my name's Martin by the way, and I'm buggerd if I'm going to waste time voting for you lot, you do nothing to earn my support)
thanks for that.. there would have been a different story if Labour had control of this Council as in Sandwell. Maybe we shall after May. There is a 2 year ntoice get out clause for Serco but as the schools are all rushing to be academies there will be nothing left for them to manage. A public comment by th eleader of the council in the express and star revealed that Walsall council were trying to cancel Serco contract in 6 months and leave education in walsall without even a walsall education board and without any guidance. In Blakenall we got Christchuch through and not cancelled. We shall be in a position to be tough on Gove and his chums after May. depends on how Walsall votes against the tories and the liberals.
ReplyDeleteregards
Ian Robertson