Purpose

That Cabinet decides how to proceed to ensure
a sufficiency of suitable primary places in the education place
planning area of Reigate. This decision follows the Cabinet Report
and subsequent decision on 27 February 2024. Taking into
consideration the outcome of the planning application and the
findings of the Education Working Group.

Content

RESOLVED:
 

That Cabinet agrees to proceed with
Option 1 to relocate Reigate Priory Junior School onto a new site
at Woodhatch Place in its current form as a 5FE Junior School. This
will involve instructing the project team to move to tender and
bring into effect activities to implement the proposal and commence
the building project.

That Cabinet acknowledges that
proceeding with Option 1 does not prevent significant school
organisational changes (as explored by the Education Working Group
in Option 2 or otherwise) from being reviewed or pursued by academy
trusts or the new East Surrey local authority in the future.

That Cabinet approves the delegation
of authority to allocate resources from the approved School Basic
Need budget required for this project to the Executive Director of
Children, Families and Lifelong Learning, in consultation with the
Cabinet Member for Children, Families and Lifelong Learning,
following Capital Property Panel’s (CPP) financial scrutiny
and endorsement. This is in line with Full Council approved amended
Financial Regulations.

That Cabinet approves delegated
authority to the Director of Land & Property to authorise the
Council to enter into all associated licences and agreements
required to facilitate the capital works.

 
Reasons for
Decisions:
 

·        
It is agreed by officers and the Department for Education that
Reigate Priory Junior School cannot remain on its current site in
the long term because the building and site are not suitable for
the provision of a 21st century education. It is
therefore imperative that RPJS is provided with a safe and fit for
purpose building as soon as possible to safeguard the health,
safety and education of its pupils and to ensure the school’s
long-term future.
 

·        
The pursual of Option 1 provides the earliest opportunity for
pupils and staff to have access to a modern, fit for purpose school
building which will keep them safe, warm and preserve the
outstanding education that the school currently provides.
Furthermore, the relocation of the school into a modern building
will promote the equity of access to school places for the
area’s most vulnerable pupils.
 

·        
In the absence of consensus as to alternative school organisational
options, relocating the school in its current format as a junior
school maintains the current status quo of school places in the
area. This stability is important in the current context of falling
pupil numbers as it allows the local authority to safeguard latent
capacity for future use in case of demographic shifts, whilst
providing the appropriate number of places to meet current demand
and minimising the level of surplus places. 
 
(The decisions on
this item can be called-in by the Children, Families, Lifelong
Learning & Culture Select Committee)