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West End | News | High Court | Consultation | Parents 'kept in dark' | academy sponsor plans
A PARENT fighting plans to transform Pimlico School into an academy took her case to the High Court yesterday (Thursday).
Jenny Elphinstone, of the Pimlico School Association, is seeking a judicial review over the decision to close the secondary comprehensive in Lupus Street.
Her lawyer, David Wolfe, is arguing that Westminster Council failed to reveal documents showing how the new school would be run.
The case centres on what has become known as the “phantom funding agreement” – a legally binding document outlining the academy sponsor’s plans for the new school – that was not made available until after the consultation and shows a selective admissions policy would be used by the academy’s sponsor, Future.
If Ms Elphinstone’s case is upheld, plans to open the academy in September could be spiked.
Mr Wolfe, who fought plans to close Islington Green School and is returning to the High Court next month to contest plans to open an academy in Camden, told the court: “Key information was not available to consultees or considered by [Westminster City Council’s] cabinet.
“Consultees were not provided with even a draft of the likely funding agreement. The cabinet does not appear to have been provided with such a document to evaluate, let alone assurances that the final version would be in the form of the draft provided.”
The funding agreement shows Pimlico Academy will rely on an admissions system known as “fair-banding”, which employs pre-entry tests to hand-pick pupils during the admissions process, if the school is over-subscribed.
Barrister Tim Kerr, acting on behalf of Westminster Council, said: “My honourable friend’s argument is flawed and totally untenable. This is nothing like the kind of radical reversal that he is claiming.
“There is no question that the council is not securing diversity in the schools admissions. During proposals to close the school, there is no legal obligation to reveal the funding agreement.”
The case continues. |
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