Bluecoat row set to cause change in law

Jul 29 2007 by Jessica Shaughnessy, Liverpool Daily Post

A ROW between Liverpool’s oldest school and the Church of England could result in a change in education law.

Moves to protect the historic Blue Coat school from being taken over by the Liverpool Diocese could result in a law making it more difficult for the Church to stage similar coups in future, politicians said last night.

The Liverpool case has sparked a campaign in Westminster to rewrite statutory guidelines.

If passed, the changes, being championed by Merseyside MP Maria Eagle, could frustrate government policy, which currently encourages independent organisations to take over the running of grammar schools.

Ms Eagle said ministers had been working behind the scenes since the Diocese of Liverpool announced it wanted to have the Blue Coat re-named as a Church of England school, last December.

The school, its teachers and pupils have strongly opposed the plan, which they have described as a “despicable and hostile takeover” bid.

But the diocese disputes this and believes it is legally entitled to run the historic school in Wavertree, based on the wording of a 300-year-old document which states pupils will receive “religious instruction”.

Last night the Government was accused of “dragging its heels” in the case, after both sides made representations in January and were told they would have a decision in three months.

Yesterday, Ms Eagle said she had been campaigning for a change in the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998 since the New Year.

It would mean ministers could intervene more easily if the Church did want to take over a school.

“There are deficiencies in the current statutory instrument within the act, which need clarifying and re-wording,” she said.

“The purpose of the legislation is to determine the level of religious education in schools, but there is recognition that it can be misconstrued and used to acquire assets, which was never the intention.

“That is not to say the Church of England are necessarily trying to do that here, but supporters of the Blue Coat have certainly interpreted the Diocese’s actions as an attempt to do that.

“Alterations to the statutory instrument will not affect the Blue Coat’s case. This has to be dealt with under the current rules. But it will still be significant to other schools that find themselves in the same position in the future.”

Sources say the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DfCSF) is searching for a loophole in current legislation to help the school.

The Blue Coat took legal advice over their position after the then Secretary of State for Education Alan Johnson, said he was “minded to approve it” in December.

Parents, governors, teachers and trustees loudly opposed the plan, saying it would be to the detriment of the high-quality education currently delivered.

Ms Eagle, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Ministry of Justice, last night said: “Initially, the issue seemed quite clear cut and there did not seem to be anything to stand in the way.

“But I am hopeful that our interventions will have a big impact on the outcome.

“I had a meeting with the minister Jim Knight and he went away and took legal advice. If a decision had been made quickly, it probably would have gone in the diocese’s favour.

“The fact it has all gone quiet is positive, it means work is being done in the background to resolve the issue.”

Cllr Paul Clein, Liverpool’s executive member for Children’s Services, accused the Government of avoiding problems caused by its own policy of encouraging independent organisations to run schools.

“It’s outrageous that the Government are dragging their heels on this,” he said.

A spokesman for the DfCSF said: “A decision has not yet been made. Talks are taking place about the position of the school but they are still in their early stages.”

jessicashaughnessy