Hundreds Make Their Voices Heard at Protest
Despite getting a little wet, hundreds of people (Isle of Wight Radio say 300+) turned up to march around Newport this lunchtime.
Click here to view pictures in our gallery
Please send in your images to be displayed in the gallery. You can email them to info@saveiowschools.co.uk
Update: You can also click here to view Wendy’s excellent pictures.
You can also watch video footage at the County Press and Meridian TV.
Head over to Ventnor Blog to hear some very interviews from the crowd.
We also made BBC News.
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March 18th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Mrs B,
You can’t be the voice of reason, because I am………………….You say that people are not interested anymore, that there are only a small number of us interested in saving our communities lifeblood, the schools.
Well if we are on the wain and people are not interested anymore then why do you bother even posting on here, we must be doing something that is getting under your skin…………I wonder what that could be???
Yours truly,
The Voice of Reason
March 18th, 2008 at 9:59 am
No Mrs B, I do not regret a word.
Again, I am a passionate person, and I am entitled to my opinion regarding the school situation, as much as are you. To behave as you are, in such a narrow minded way will only leave you open to criticism. Most of us are very open to change, so why be so presumptuous after telling me off for presuming what kind of mother you are, how hypocritical! But the closure of fantastic schools, where children are thriving and achieving so well. Well this is criminal.
This website is called saveiowschools, so it is understandable that you will come across my kind of comment.
I am afraid that you are very sarcastic and rude. To visit this website you would have to type in, save isle of wight schools to find us, yet you are happy to shut successful schools. You, the voice of reason! haha.
What a joke, you are the voice of destruction.
You think that I cant take the heat, and tell me to get out. No, this is a website for save our schools campaigners to voice there opinions. If you want your own personal voice of destruction website, then go and open one up.
Like I said you are a jumped up idiot.
March 18th, 2008 at 12:00 am
Response to C, post 27- I don’t consider responsible the Trinity / ABK people who were part of the consultation to merge. In fact, there clearly hasn’t been enough consultation- like you say, these proposals to extend the age range to GCSE/A level by expanding to Carisbrooke’s site, proposals made without (or at any rate *before*) further consultation, aren’t coming from the existing faith schools.
My objection is not about the decision to merge existing faith middle schools and extend them to KS3, which seems to be acceptable to parents at those schools and doesn’t really affect other schools. It is about the statement of intent to greatly increase age range (which is included in the ‘creation of Christ the King College’ proposal), and the implication from ‘which way forward’, that the non-faith high school to provide the additional space would be Carisbrooke.
I also find it alarming that the council is taking it for granted that faith education through secondary school age would be best for raising standards. True you want your child to go to a faith secondary school, and you may (or may not) be representative of the majority of Trinity/ABK parents. But how would this would impact upon other schools and students at those schools? It’s my understanding that faith schools tend to have a depressing effect on other schools’ results when they are introduced, by ‘creaming off’ certain types of student. They also segregate students which especially as they get older I’m personally not in favour of. As a non-faith student I went to West Wight middle. When I went to Carisbrooke, several of the new friends I made came from Trinity middle, perhaps due to similar values in the absence of faith criteria. Mixing of those from different backgrounds when they come to high school is, from my perspective, a good thing, and I’m broadly against introducing selection to education at high school level where it doesn’t currently exist. Shouldn’t non-faith parents/students/schools be consulted about introducing faith to high school level?
But I wouldn’t presume to extend this view to anyone else. What I’ve sought to represent on the Save Carisbrooke High group is that a GCSE-A-level faith school should *certainly* be subject to consultation if it involves loss of an existing high school. Carisbrooke being under threat, as pointed out by Anon (29) and Wendy (31) is not just suggested by the press, but by the council’s own documents. If no-one opposes the plans, and with such conflicting documents, the Council could perhaps just take what they like and run with it.
March 17th, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Wendy, thanks.
Yes, I know the info is confusing and differs wherever you look. I was simply trying to add info from the perspective of the school, albeit secondhand. I apologise that it doesn’t necessarily match with the council’s info…!!!! Why should that surprise us?!? Do they know something we don’t… again?
The amount of incomplete/disparate information provided is incredible. But whether helpful or not, knowledge is power, so the more info the merrier - use it as you will.
March 17th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
C (27): the concern about Carisbrooke closing and becoming a faith school is not down to media hype but because that is what it says in the council’s consultation booklet, Which Way Forward. Under all options for Carisbrooke it says “This site will become Christ the King (faith) College in all options.”
While under ABK it says it will become a school for ages 4-9 under Option 1, 4-11 under Options 2 and 3. And Trinity is down as ages 4-9 under Option 1 and closed under 2 and 3. No mention of them becoming a faith college.
You can see why people are confused and concerned!