Stevenston parents' concerns over schools merger

Parents of pupils attending Auchenharvie Academy are making clear their opposition to North Ayrshire Council’s controversial plan to merge the Stevenston school with Ardrossan Academy.

In letters to the3towns and on the Auchenharvie Academy Parent Council Facebook page, parents set out their concerns over the proposals and how they could impact on children who would have to travel from Stevenston to Ardrossan for their secondary education.  North Ayrshire Council’s SNP administration has already stated its preferred site for the proposed new school would be the current location of Ardrossan Academy.

Although the Council is presently carrying out a public consultation on the merger plan, the fact SNP councillors have publicly backed a new school and indicated their belief it should be located in Ardrossan has caused concern for parents, with some expressing the opinion that they fear it is already a ‘done deal’.

Parents and other interested members of the public have until next Friday (June 14) to respond to the public consultation.  Veron Maneely of the Auchenharvie Academy Parent Council  said, “I encourage everyone to have their say.  Even if you’ve already submitted your views, further submissions can be left at campus21@north-ayrshire.gov.uk.”

Mrs Maneely said she attended almost all of the public meetings held by North Ayrshire Council regarding the schools merger plan, but had been left “exasperated” that the local authority seemed determined to press ahead despite opposition from parents in both Stevenston and Ardrossan.  the3towns understands concerns have also been raised by parents of pupils who attend two schools for children with additional needs – James McFralane School in Ardrossan and Haysholm School in Irvine – which are also earmarked to be relocated to the proposed Three Towns campus in Ardrossan.

Veron Maneely flagged-up the issue of children’s safety if a new super-school was located almost adjacent to St Matthews Academy, which itself was built to accommodate pupils from two merged schools – St Andrews Academy in Saltcoats and Kilwinning’s St Michael’s Academy.  Mrs Maneely said, “The volume of traffic at the beginning and close of the school day would see 1,673 pupils from the new campus added to 1,250 pupils from St Matthews all arriving and leaving en masse.

“Officials from the Council’s Roads department admit it will be a challenge to alleviate the traffic problem, but they don’t say how it would be possible.”

Another Stevenston parent said, “This is already a deprived area and a lot of children walk to school because parents do not have transport or can’t afford the bus fares.  It costs £8.00 a week for a mega-rider [bus ticket] for my daughter, but if you are a single parent on benefits, parents on benefits or part of a low-income family then the additional expense could lead to an increase in poverty.”  The parent suggested there could even be a rise in pupil absenteeism if parents simply could not afford the cost of sending children from Stevenston to Ardrossan.

It was also pointed out there is currently no bus route that would service a school located on the site of the current Ardrossan Academy. One Stevenston parent commented that it would be much easier for her daughter to get a bus to Kilwinning.

Last week, in a letter to the3towns, an Ardrossan parent called for a united front against the Council’s merger proposal, arguing that Ardrossan and Stevenston residents should not be squabbling over which town offered the ‘least bad’ site for a new school.  The parent of pupils at Ardrossan Academy said that, instead, everyone “should work together to say ‘no’ to the proposal”.

 If the merger plan goes ahead, both Ardrossan Academy and Auchenharvie Academy would be closed.  A new Three Towns campus would accommodate all pupils, including those from James McFarlane and Haysholm, and would open in August 2016, according to the Council’s schedule.

The cost of a new super-school is put at £42.5m, with the SNP Scottish Government making available £22.5m and North Ayrshire Council supplying the balance.

Next Friday (June 14), Auchenharvie Academy Parent Council will hand-in a petition to North Ayrshire Council headquarters in Irvine, containing signatures of local people who oppose the merger plan.  Copies of the petition will also be sent to the Scottish Government and Education Scotland.

Council plan to revamp town centres

North Ayrshire Council’s ruling SNP Cabinet will this week receive a report setting-out plans to revitalise Saltcoats town centre.

The document, compiled by Mr Craig Hatton, the local authority’s Corporate Director (Development & Environment), argues that Saltcoats and Irvine require special attention by virtue of their being the main retail towns in the district.  Ardrossan town centre is also highlighted as requiring attention because of its particularly run-down appearance.

Mr Hatton says, “The goal is to create Town Centres that are not solely dependent on their individual retail offerings but also support local communities, businesses and visitors alike.  Work moving forward will consider our Town Centres as social destinations, and consider the spaces where public, commercial and social functions often overlap. Strong connections with surrounding neighbourhoods, commercial areas and parks will help to reinforce the view that Town Centres are accessible to all users.  Within this aspirational approach, there will be some complex aspects of physical connectivity that the Council will need to consider amongst planned uses, open space, roads and the surrounding neighbourhoods.”

The Council strategy hopes to take forward a series of projects over the next five years that build on work already carried out.  The five identified themes are: Connectivity, Competitiveness, Conservation, Physical Infrastructure, and Business Support.

Craig Hatton argues Saltcoats should be considered a priority primarily as it is the main retail and banking hub for the Three Towns.  Setting out areas of required work, the Corporate Director says, “The main retail areas of Hamilton Street and Dockhead Street are in need of shop front improvements and rationalisation of both the public realm and associated street furniture in order to combat the perceived decline of the urban environment.”

Although Saltcoats is considered ‘significant’ due to its position at the centre of the Three Towns, a report from credit rating agency Experian indicates the town centre shopping area has suffered a 49.5% ‘leakage’ in terms of retail expenditure, mainly to the top three competitors across West Central Scotland.

The Council plans to bring forward master plans for Irvine and Saltcoats, which will set-out considerations for town centre environments and what are described as “key inherent challenges”.

According to Craig Hatton, “The master plans will be based on a clear vision and comprehensive set of development principles. They will also provide detailed guidance for individual spaces, streets and sites.”

In relation to Ardrossan, the report to be considered by the SNP Cabinet states, “Ardrossan Town Centre will continue to be developed in a partnership approach between IBRC [Irvine Bay Regeneration Company] and the Council.  Ardrossan is an important town in that it functions as the gateway to Arran and in that regard acts as a showcase for North Ayrshire as a direct result of the significant number of visitors and tourists that pass through the area each year.  The town itself is in need of continued regeneration to support the businesses based there.”

 Flagged-up as a priority is “the need to create better linkages between the failing commercial

centre, harbour activities, marina development and South Beach that encourages people to spend time in Ardrossan rather than simply driving straight to the ferry terminal”.

The report continues, “Ardrossan suffers from a perceived poor sense of arrival and there is a need to further consider matters that improve the main route into the town along Glasgow Street; and the promenade and beach-front area has suffered from significant decline and there is a requirement to further regenerate the town with better parking and facilities that supports residents and businesses located within the area and acts as a catalyst for further investment.”

Funding for identified town centre projects is to be provided “in line with North Ayrshire Councils approved capital and revenue monies and in line with the recently approved forward plan”.  Mr Hatton’s paper covers the first five years of an intended ten year development plan, with additional projects to be considered at a future date and as matters progress.

UK 'austerity' costs us £585 each

Margaret Burgess MSP has revealed that savage cuts imposed by the Tory-Lib Dem Government in London have cost North Ayrshire residents an average £585 per person.

Mrs Burgess said, “Westminster austerity measures are sucking £51-million out of the North Ayrshire economy, and working families on low and middle incomes are among the hardest hit with cuts to Working Families Tax Credit and Local Housing Allowance.”

The SNP MSP noted that cuts to Incapacity Benefit allied to other benefits only being uprated by 1%, much lower than the rate of inflation, produced a £10m cost to people in North Ayrshire, with some of the most vulnerable people “taking a direct hit”.

Margaret Burgess said, “The hated Bedroom Tax, together with cuts to Child Benefit, Local Housing Allowance and Working Families Tax Credits are costing this area more than £20-million.

“This Westminster austerity programme is hitting individuals, families and the whole community.  Every pound lost to North Ayrshire in this way is a pound that cannot be spent in local businesses, shops, cafes or leisure activities.  In turn, this could have dire consequences for local employment.”

The MSP for Cunninghame South, which includes Stevenston, added, “All of this stems from a government and policies that North Ayrshire and Scotland does not want and did not vote for.”

Mrs Burgess said a ‘Yes’ vote in Scotland's Independence Referendum, scheduled for September 18 next year, has become an urgent necessity.  “Only with independence and full Scottish control over our own spending can we build the fairer and more prosperous Scotland we all want.”

The figures highlighted by Mrs Burgess were the result of research carried out by Sheffield Hallam University, funded jointly by the Scottish Government and Financial Times.

SSP target Tories over Bedroom Tax

North Ayrshire activists from the Scottish Socialist Party are travelling to the Scottish Tory Party conference in Stirling to hammer home opposition to the hated Bedroom Tax, which has resulted in some of the poorest people in the country having already meagre benefits cut.

Under the legislation introduced by the Tory-Lib Dem UK Government, anyone in receipt of Housing Benefit who has a room in their home more than is deemed necessary has seen their income slashed by 14%.  If a person has two ‘additional’ rooms, irrespective of their circumstances in many cases, their benefit is cut by 25%.

The Scottish Socialist Party has held a series of Anti-Bedroom Tax meetings across North Ayrshire, and lobbied meetings of the local Council.  Subsequently, the SNP-run Council agreed to introduce a ‘no evictions’ policy where tenants get into rent arrears as a result of their benefit being cut by the Bedroom Tax.  In certain circumstances, the Council is also prepared to re-designate rooms so that a tenant would not fall victim to the Westminster-imposed tax.

Now, local SSP activists will take their protest direct to the door of Scottish Tories as they hold their conference in Stirling (June 8). 

Richie Venton, SSP regional organiser, told the3towns, “The Scottish Tory conference is a perfect opportunity to vent our fury at the architects and advocates of this vicious theft of benefits from the poorest in our communities by the party of the millionaires.

“That is why people from North Ayrshire are travelling to Stirling to demonstrate.  The Tories need to feel the hot breath of opposition, they need to hear our loud and clear message that the only people who are going to be evicted are the Tories, not tenants.”

Mr Venton pointed out the Westminster administration led by David Cameron has “absolutely no mandate to rule or ruin Scotland,” adding, “The working class is prepared to unite with those hammered by the Bedroom Tax to prevent people being turfed-out of their homes just because they can't afford to eat, heat their homes and pay an average of £14 a week in Bedroom Tax.”