Campaigners say they will take legal action after North Tyneside Council rejected a request from opposition members to 'call in' a decision to launch a consultation on plans to close Hazlewood Primary School. Reform councillor for Weetslade Richard Ross claimed the local authority was relying on "flawed evidence" as it launched a second bid to shut the Wideopen school.
The council's cabinet agreed to open a consultation on a second proposal to shut the school earlier this month, prompting fury from parents. That came just months after the Schools Adjudicator blocked the initial proposals, citing "shortcomings" in the proposals.
Call-in request rejected
Coun Ross and colleagues were unhappy with a structural report used to justify the planned closure. They served the council with a call-in notice which would have required the council to hold a public review into the council's decision. However, this has been rejected.
Coun Ross, who is a parent and a governor at the school, said campaigners were now taking legal action. He said: "Throughout this process, we have treated council officers with the utmost professional respect. We followed every constitutional channel available and repeatedly offered constructive, sensible opportunities to pause, de-escalate, and correct these procedural errors before they spiralled."
"Regrettably, every warning was ignored. By shutting down a valid cross-party call-in behind closed doors and pushing ahead with a consultation based on outdated engineering reports, the administration has bypassed the Council’s own constitution and denied the public open scrutiny."
Council responds
It is understood the council does not accept the accusation that the decision making process has been rushed. It has been reviewed by the chief executive who concluded there was no breach of the requirements under the council's constitution. It also challenged the suggestion that there was out of date information in the consultation, and maintained that there was no inconsistency in the reports despite concerns raised by campaigners on the dates of the report and remedial work carried out to address issues.
Responding to Coun Ross's comments, Rebecca Wall, Director of Children’s Services at North Tyneside Council, said: "Ahead of the launch of this consultation, requests were made to call in the decision to proceed. While the requests did not meet the requirements to be considered a valid call-in, the issues and concerns raised were carefully reviewed and considered. We recognise that uncertainty is difficult for pupils, families and staff."
"The future of Hazlewood Primary School is an important issue for pupils, families, staff and the wider community, and we want to ensure everyone has the opportunity to have their say. We have launched this consultation because we need to consider the long-term future of education on a site affected by significant structural challenges, alongside wider changes in pupil numbers and demand for school places across the borough."
"Since these issues were identified, we have worked with specialist engineers and the Department for Education to explore potential solutions and have invested in measures that have enabled education to continue safely. However, temporary accommodation was never intended to be a permanent solution and does not address the underlying condition of the building."
"This consultation is a genuine opportunity for people to help shape our thinking. We are committed to considering all feedback received before determining the next steps, and no decision has been made at this stage."
The matter is now heading to external legal challenge and the High Court, according to Coun Ross.
