Public to have their say on controversial plan to relocate Henry Cort Community College
The public will soon have the chance to have their say on controversial plans to relocate a Fareham school to help cope with growing housing - and pupil - numbers.
Hampshire County Council is to open a formal public consultation on Friday, January 10 2025 seeking views on the proposed relocation of The Henry Cort Community College in Fareham, to a new site in North Whiteley from September 2027. The consultation will be published on Hampshire County Council’s website and will run until Friday, February 14 2025.
The timetable comes after a Hampshire County Council committee looked again at the decision to consult on the plans despite the overwhelming majority of respondents to an earlier consultation opposing the proposals. No final decision to be taken until June 2025, following local elections.
The proposal to relocate the school comes as forecasts show that the ongoing development of the Whiteley area will result in demand for between 900 and 1,200 secondary school places. A new secondary school in North Whiteley is planned to meet the predicted need for school places across the whole of the Whiteley area, once the new development is complete.
However the council said that while clearly needed to meet future demand, the planned new school in North Whiteley would also have a significant impact on The Henry Cort Community College which currently takes pupils from across the Whiteley area.
The council said that as more families in Whiteley are anticipated to move their children to the new school in North Whiteley from September 2027, it is expected that Henry Cort would see a corresponding reduction in its pupil numbers, and consequently in its funding from Government, which is allocated on a per-pupil basis.
This in turn would lead to a reduced curriculum, staffing recruitment and retention difficulties, an impact on children’s educational outcomes, significant financial challenges - and ultimately, an untenable future.
Three potential options were originally outlined for a first phase consultation - the current proposal to relocate, an option to build the new school and close Henry Cort, and a third option to build the new school and keep Henry Cort Community College open but with a smaller catchment area. This last option was the most popular with those who had previously voiced their views.
However Hampshire County Council said that the proposal to relocate Henry Cort to the new site in North Whiteley is considered the most viable option to protect its future while ensuring sufficient school places and most importantly of all, a good quality of education and stability for all children across Whiteley and Fareham.
It said this has been informed by feedback from a previous informal consultation earlier this year, and consideration of the potential wider impacts on the educational offer in Whiteley and Fareham.
Councillor Roz Chadd, Cabinet Lead for Children’s Services, said: “I understand there are a range of views on the proposed relocation of Henry Cort, and I can assure local residents and my fellow members that all feedback is highly valued and appreciated. This is why we continue to consult extensively on this matter, and why it is so important for the Whiteley and Fareham community to come forward and share their views with us through the upcoming formal consultation.
“I must stress that that no final decision has been taken, and will not be until June next year, following thorough consideration of all feedback received and the many important factors concerning the long-term educational offer in the local area.”
A Public Notice will now be published on Friday, January 10 on the County Council’s website. A further report outlining feedback from the formal consultation, and a final recommendation, will be presented to Councillor Chadd for her consideration at a public Decision Day meeting in June 2025.
Should the relocation of Henry Cort ultimately be agreed, this would entail various changes to local catchment areas and admissions arrangements. These would be subject to separate consultations thereafter, in line with standard process.