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Council Response to Parent Council Questions

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Ardgowan Primary School - Decant to Sacred Heart Primary 

Questions we would like answered by Inverclyde Council 

Questions from parent council and parents in black

Answers from Council in blue 

1. Why have we had no communication from Inverclyde Council? (With the exception of the Estates Team)? 
2. There have been a number of meetings and forums for communicating with authority staff on key issues and we are pleased to note the positive involvement of the Estates team. The authority apologies if it appears as though there has been a recent lack of communication. Staff absences/annual leave may have contributed to this difficulty. We are hopeful this has now been resolved. Everyone is working to ensure that this is as smooth a transition as possible to the decant location and we can look forward to the eventual return to the refurbished Ardgowan Primary. Download responses here 
   
   
3. Why are 2 classes having to go to St Andrews?
4. It has been known for some time that until the modular classrooms arrive 2 classes will require to be accommodated in St Andrew’s Primary school. The period of relocation will be as short as possible. School management teams have been fully involved in this decision making process. The best classrooms for this have been identified by the two Head Teachers. The following arrangements have been agreed: P6 pupils will register each morning in St Andrew’s (except when they have a P6 assembly). The P6 teachers will e-mail the register to Ardgowan office staff each day. P6 pupils and their teachers will spend the interval at St Andrew’s. Ardgowan pupils will play outside in the playground with the rest of the St Andrew’s pupils. Their teachers will join St Andrew’s staff in the staffroom. If the weather is poor and pupils are required to stay in their classrooms, we will offer enhanced hours to Classroom Assistants/ASN staff from Ardgowan and/or St Andrew’s to supervise the 2 P6 classes.
5. Ardgowan pupils will have their lunch in Ardgowan Primary School each day (they will leave St Andrews at 12:15pm each day to join Ardgowan pupils). 
   
   
6. What are the alternatives to this? e.g. hiring portacabins
7. This is a complex issue and involves planning considerations, service connections and significant cost involved in actually setting the modular units onto the foundations. The foundations are being designed at the moment for the modules we currently own at the shared campus. For the short period of time involved it is unlikely that providers would not be interested in pricing for any temporary modular arrangement.
   
8. We intend using the portacabins from the shared campus which will become available at the end of October. The classes in St Andrew’s are ideally suited to providing a high standard of education and will offer the best solution in the circumstances. 
   
   
9. Is Sacred Heart ready for us to move into?
10. Sacred Heart will be ready for the move at the designated time. Parents will be invited to the school when it is ready for occupation. 
    
    
11. What plans do you have in place if a child becomes ill at St Andrew’s Primary? How will this be communicated to Sacred Heart and ultimately the parents? Who will take responsibility for the class if the teacher has to take the ill child back to Sacred Heart?
12. The health and well-being of our children is of paramount importance. If an Ardgowan pupil takes unwell in St Andrew’s they can access the medical facilities/first aider there. The pupil will be collected from either St Andrew’s or Ardgowan, depending on which is best for the pupil/parent. If a child needs to go to Ardgowan School to be collected, they will be escorted by a member of staff. 
    
    
13. There will be no IT suite at Sacred Heart - how will our children get IT lessons?
14. Many primary schools in the 21^st century do not have designated ICT suites as it is seen as best practice to integrate ICT into the class curriculum. All experiences and outcomes related to technology will be fully covered by teachers in this way. 
    
    
15. What about PE? - There is not enough space at Sacred Heart for the recommendedhours per week?
16. Children in Ardgowan do not currently have access to the full 2 hours recommended PE. Managers and staff will timetable Sacred Heart hall use effectively to allow pupils to access as much PE as possible. Staff will also work with Active School’s staff to look at creative alternatives to increasing PE time. We will keep you informed of this work. 
    
    
17. How will all of this impact on the learning and teaching of the children?
18. We understand fully parental concerns but are confident that there will be no negative impact on learning and teaching. We have successfully decanted a number of schools and there has been no negative impact on achievement and attainment for our children. Any issues will be dealt with as quickly as possible and the situation will be monitored along with parents on an ongoing basis. 
    
    
19. Are the St Andrews parents happy to lose their music room and library?
20. St Andrew’s staff and parents have been extremely helpful in sharing their accommodation for this short period of time. 
    
    
21. Why could we not get anyone at the Council to answer our calls or questions?
22. There would never be an instance where council staff would not try to answer parental calls as soon as possible. We will investigate why this is perceived to have happened on this occasion.
    
    

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