The Humble Petition of residents of Hemmingwell, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire and the surrounding areas,
Sheweth, that the proposed change of name of the Oakway schools in Hemmingwell and the additional cost in changing the school uniform are both unnecessary and costly and that the schools in Oakway are well established and the name is well known.
Wherefore your Petitioners pray that your Honourable House urges the Secretary of State for Education to urge the Northamptonshire County Council and the Board of Governors at the Oakway schools to work together to ensure that any merged school will be named Oakway Primary School
And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray, &c.—[Presented by Mr Peter Bone, Official Report, 19 June 2012; Vol. 546, c. 837.]
[P001099]
Observations from the Secretary of State for Education:
Statutory proposals have been published and approved to close Oakway Junior School and to enlarge and change the age range of Oakway Infant School to create a single primary school with effect from 1 September 2012.
It is the responsibility of the infant school’s governing body to decide the name of the extended school. To do this, they must reach a unanimous vote of the full membership of the governing body, in favour of the proposal.
The residents should make their views known to the school’s governing body; there is no direct role for either the local authority or Ministers in this process. It is a local decision, consistent with the Government’s drive to remove unnecessary bureaucracy from the system to allow schools to raise standards for every school.